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OAKLAND โ With unsettled contract situations making many of the playersโ futures beyond this season uncertain, Warriors coach Steve Kerr is encouraging his team now more than ever to go with the flow, have fun and enjoy the moment.
Two-time reigning NBA Finals MVP Kevin Durant signed a one-plus-one contract that allows him to become a free agent again next summer, while fellow All-Stars Draymond Green and Klay Thompson could be up for extensions.
โNothing lasts forever in this league, but weโve always said we want to keep this going as long as we can, and weโre right in the thick of it,โ two-time MVP Stephen Curry said.
After two straight titles and three in four seasons, all eyes are on the East Bay once more as training camps begin league-wide.
Thatโs why Kerr is stressing going for it in what might be the final hurrah for the superstar core of this team. Not that Durant, Green nor Thompson is talking about leaving town.
Playing Final Season in Oakland Before Moving
โWe are playing with some house money. We won three of the last four championships. Our place in the history of the league is pretty secure,โ Kerr said. โI donโt think our guys should feel a ton of pressure. I think they should feel the importance of trying to do it again, because this may be the last time we have this current iteration of the Warriors, just given all the free agents and the money crunch and everything else. So we donโt know whatโs going to happen. So why not just go all out and enjoy every step of the way?โ
โI mean, I definitely donโt approach it like weโre playing with house money. We do have three championships. Theyโre all in the past,โ Green said. โItโs about approaching each year with that same goal and that same mentality. And the point you get to the point where, โOh, man, weโre just playing house money, we already got it,โ youโre done.
โNone of us are ready for this run to come to an end. So weโve got to continue to approach it like weโve got zero. And thatโs cliche and impossible to do, but you want to try to get as close to that as you possibly can. And thatโs my mindset always entering the season.โ
A chuckling Curry stood between Green and Thompson during Mondayโs media day clearly enjoying himself and all this team has accomplished. The Warriors posed with their three title trophies from the past four seasons.
And why not? They all know how hard it is to maintain such dominance year after year.
Three Titles in the Last Four Years
โWe have a lot to celebrate. Three titles in the last four years. A chance to add another one in our final season at Oracle. A bunch of free agents next summer,โ Kerr said. โA lot could change. We donโt know. Obviously we want to keep this thing going, but at some point you just have to enjoy the moment, enjoy the now because thereโs going to be so much speculation as to whatโs ahead. Nobody knows whatโs ahead.โ
โIโm confident that Iโll be here for a very long time, so itโs not something Iโm going into the season thinking about. Like all that stuff will be taken care of when itโs best for me, when itโs best for the team,โ Green said. โIโm not looking at this one-sided like, โOh man, Iโve, got to do whatโs right for Draymond.โ Itโs a partnership. And itโs a family. And doing the right thing for everyone involved is important.โ
Kerr knows his players realize how special a time this is for them and the franchise.
โThey really enjoy being around each other. They really enjoy the process,โ Kerr said. โAnd having won several championships, I think they feel like, โAll right โฆ weโve done some damage and letโs keep it rolling,'โ
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