Steve Kerr returning to Warriors on new 2-year contract amid exit speculation

The Golden State Warriors and head coach Steve Kerr have agreed to terms on a new contract that will keep the 60-year-old coach with the organization for the foreseeable future, league sources told ClutchPoints on Saturday evening.

Kerr and the team agreed to a new two-year contract, setting up the 2027-28 NBA season as potentially the legendary head coach’s final season in the league.

Terms of the deal were first reported by ESPN.

After meeting with owner Joe Lacob, general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr., and other high-ranking officials within the organization, Kerr was able to find common ground and paint a clear image on an assortment of topics. Ideas surrounding roster construction, philosophical changes to the way the team plays, and evaluating the landscape of possible offseason changes all played a major role in these discussions.

Although his comments at the conclusion of the Warriors’ season left everything open for interpretation, whether he would be back with the organization after spending the entire 2025-26 season on an expiring contract, Kerr expressed his desire to continue coaching to Lacob and Dunleavy when the sides held their first meeting at the end of April, sources said.

In doing so, the Warriors too made it clear that they would like Kerr to return, but with some changes regarding the team’s style of play and different ways they go about utilizing the roster to the max. Kerr and the Warriors’ brass were able to chart a clear vision for the immediate future of the franchise and make adjustments to regain their championship aspirations.

The goal between the two parties was to have an agreement heading into the NBA Draft Lottery and Combine in Chicago this week, and the sides were able to come to an agreement on Thursday night before finalizing details of his new contract on Friday, sources said. He will remain the highest-paid coach in the league over the next two seasons.

Kerr’s future with the franchise he’s spent 12 years with and has led to four championship runs has been at the top of NBA headlines since the Warriors lost to the Phoenix Suns in the play-in tournament on April 17. At the conclusion of Golden State’s 111-96 loss to the Suns, speculation of Kerr’s departure heightened when he embraced Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, with the three sharing a moment on the court.

“I don’t know what’s going to happen next, but I love you guys to death,” Kerr told his two future Hall of Famers. “Thank you.”

Draymond Green, Steve Kerr, and Stephen Curry with a big hug as their season comes to an end

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— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) April 18, 2026

In the aftermath of the team’s loss and their season ending, Kerr made it clear that he wasn’t sure what the future held and whether he would be back with the team since he coached the entire 2025-26 season in the final year of his contract.

“Take a week or two, and eventually sit down and talk with Joe [Lacob] and Mike [Dunleavy]. We’ve always had a great partnership and collaboration. [I’ll] just see where they are, and I’ll tell them where I am, and we’ll talk about what’s next for the Warriors, what the plan is this offseason, and we will come to a collaborative decision on what’s next,” Kerr said after the loss in Phoenix. “I don’t know what’s going to happen. I still love coaching, but I get it. These jobs all have an expiration date.

“It might still go on. It may not, I don’t know at this point.”

Following the first meeting between Kerr and the Warriors’ brass, the internal feeling and belief of Kerr returning grew, sources said. While there were still hurdles to cross, like contract length and agreeing to firm philosophical changes in the way he has coached the team over the last couple of years since their 2022 title run, Kerr and the franchise’s leadership are on the same page.

Throughout this discourse, potential positions for Kerr outside of the Warriors never once surfaced in conversations, sources said. These talks were solely focused on Kerr and the Warriors sorting through a variety of topics before agreeing to a new contract, as rumors surrounding potential media giants pursuing Kerr held zero influence on internal discussions.

The Warriors also did not prepare any sort of coaching search or begin discussing potential candidates to eventually replace Kerr before or during conversations over the last few weeks.

Warriors’ offseason after settling Kerr’s contract

Entering the offseason, the Warriors will immediately turn their attention to discussing a long-term contract extension with Curry after agreeing to a new deal with Kerr, sources said.

Curry, who signed a $62.6 million extension in August 2024, is entering the final year of his contract. The Warriors are determined to negotiate a new deal with Steph early in the summer. At this time, it’s unknown how many years Curry wants on a new extension and whether he will take the full max or opt for less money to help the team be in a better financial position to tackle other offseason obstacles.

Those would include Green’s pending $27.6 million player option and Butler entering the final year of his contract at $56.8 million while rehabbing his ACL injury. Brandin Podziemski will also become extension-eligible this offseason after averaging career highs in points and minutes during the 2025-26 season, but the early expectation is that the Warriors will opt to wait on a new deal for the combo guard.

It is expected that major roster construction decisions are made around Curry in the offseason now that Kerr is returning as head coach. Green could very well wind up being in trade conversations the Warriors hold after his inclusion in trade talks for Giannis Antetokounmpo at February’s trade deadline, and uncertainty surrounds whether Kristaps Porzingis will ultimately decide to return as a free agent.

Regardless of what decisions are made, Kerr and the Warriors’ leadership have agreed to be on the same page regarding roster construction and the roles of everyone who potentially joins the franchise this summer.

In 12 seasons with the Warriors, Kerr has gone 708-401 (63.8%), including postseason games, as the head coach of the team. He won three championships in his first four seasons with Golden State before Curry and the Warriors’ improbable championship run in 2022. Kerr is one of 28 different coaches in NBA history with at least 600 regular-season wins, and he was named one of the NBA’s 15 greatest coaches in 2024.

After a disappointing 37-45 season filled with injuries, Kerr and the Warriors are determined to turn the page to the next chapter of this illustrious franchise’s history, one they hope can end with the head coach and Curry ending their respective careers at the top of the league with at least one more championship run.

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