Getty
Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr (left) and superstar point guard Stephen Curry (right).
The Golden State Warriors have been the class of the NBA over the last dozen years, both in terms of success and comportment, and that didn’t change after the franchise fell to the Minnesota Timberwolves in five games in the Western Conference Semifinals.
Head coach Steve Kerr spoke to media members following the team’s loss in Minneapolis on Wednesday, May 14, and answered honestly and respectfully the question of how the matchup might have turned out had Stephen Curry not suffered a hamstring strain in the first half of Game 1, which sidelined him for the remainder of the series.
“Actually, I don’t even have to think,” Kerr said. “I know we had a shot. I know we could have gone the distance. Maybe we wouldn’t have, but it doesn’t matter. Again, everything in the playoffs is about who stays healthy and who gets hot and are you playing well at the right time. Do you have multiple guys step up in key games, make shots. And do you have good health. You see it every year, in every series. There’s a little bit of luck involved, and we’ve been on both sides of that. It’s just part of it.”
Warriors Gave Timberwolves Respect After Second-Round Series Victory
GettyMinnesota Timberwolves superstar Anthony Edwards.
ESPN reporter Ohm Youngmisuk, who asked the question prompting Kerr’s answer detailed above, posted to X in a definitive statement that “the Warriors didn’t want to take anything away from the Wolves.”
Minnesota is now back in the Western Conference Finals for the second consecutive year, earning its way there in just 10 games after dispatching the Los Angeles Lakers in five contests in Round 1. The team is young and deep and defensively solid on the interior and exterior, plus has a true superstar in Anthony Edwards upon whom it can rely.
The Timberwolves will square off against either the Oklahoma City Thunder or the Denver Nuggets for the right to move onto the NBA Finals. The Thunder lead the Nuggets 3-2, with Game 6 scheduled in Denver on Thursday, May 15. If necessary, a Game 7 between the two teams will take place in Oklahoma City on Sunday, May 18.
Warriors in Mix for Giannis Antetokounmpo Trade During Offseason
GettyGiannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks.
Meanwhile, Golden State enters the offseason with a massive Curry-related “what-if,” though that is already the past and won’t matter in the 2025-26 campaign.
Curry will turn 38 years old in the second half of next season, while Jimmy Butler will turn 36 before the season starts and Draymond Green will be 36 years old in March of next year.
The Warriors have several quality pieces in place, though injuries will remain a concern moving into next season, as the team’s core stars will all be in their late-30s by the time the playoffs begin.
Golden State is among the wildcard contenders to land Giannis Antetokounmpo in a trade this summer, who is prepared to leave the Milwaukee Bucks for the right opportunity for the first time in his career. Such a move could change the face of the franchise and would probably necessitate dealing Butler in the process to make the money work.
Should that outcome fail to materialize, it is unclear if the Warriors could make any other splash moves to significantly change the roster ahead of next season.
Max Dible covers the NFL, NBA and MLB for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Green Bay Packers, Minnesota Vikings, Chicago Bears and Cleveland Browns. He covered local and statewide news as a reporter for West Hawaii Today and served as news director for BigIslandNow.com and Pacific Media Group’s family of Big Island radio stations before joining Heavy. More about Max Dible
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