For months now, Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr has made it clear that he is not interested in setting expectations for the 2026-27 season. Back in September I wrote about how this was essentially Kerr's way of acknowledging that this version of the team was not going to be all that good, but it may have actually been a stroke of genius for the head coach to shun expectations the way he has.
Kerr expanded on his thinking in a KNBR radio appearance on Monday:
"My whole thing this year is I'm not even addressing expectations, because they don't matter. The only thing that matters is the process. Our process last year was flawed, frankly ... We were scattered last year, we weren't organized well enough ... The whole message this year is: Handle your business today," Kerr said.
Really the only way the Warriors could have attacked this season is to do it without expectations. To talk about winning a championship would have sounded insane given the huge injuries to Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody. Even if Kristaps Porzingis was in the fold, a championship still would feel very much out of reach.
This season had to be about improving the process and trying to make incremental gains rather than trying to chase down the big dogs at the top of the Western Conference. Looking at the standings after every game is not going to be helpful for this, team but looking at the number of turnovers after each game, and trying to get that number down, is a much more attainable goal that the team can chase each and every game.
Warriors can succeed as long as they stay focused on the process
The lack of expectations doesn't mean the Warriors are going to win 60-something games just by keeping their heads down and ignoring the noise. But maybe the change in mindset will allow them to exceed expectations since the end result is not about winning a championship. It's purely about trying to get better and play as a cohesive unit, which is not as far-fetched or daunting as trying to be one of the top-six seeds in the West.
Kerr has been around a long time and even if it must have felt foreign to enter this season without talking about winning another ring or trying to maximize Stephen Curry's greatness, he knew that this was the way to get the most out of the guys that he has on the roster.
During a long, grinding 82-game season, getting your team to keep its head down and just try to focus on the small things rather than trying to achieve any big picture goals is the best way to keep everyone grounded and focused on the process.
Kerr knew exactly what he was doing and now the team has won four games in a row. While there will be lots of peaks and valleys throughout the year, as long as Golden State remains focused on continual improvement, Kerr will have done his job.
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