Draymond Green and Steve Kerr: A Volatile Partnership Built on Trust, Fire, and Championships
SAN FRANCISCO - If you’ve followed the Golden State Warriors over the past decade, you know this much: Draymond Green and Steve Kerr don’t always see eye to eye. But through every flare-up and sideline spat, their relationship has remained a cornerstone of the Warriors’ dynasty - a combustible, complicated, and deeply loyal bond that’s powered banners and built a legacy.
The latest chapter unfolded during Golden State’s win over Orlando. Green, fresh off an ejection in the previous game against Phoenix, found himself in the middle of another heated moment - this time with his head coach.
The argument erupted in the third quarter, and Green walked off to the locker room. He returned to the bench in the fourth but never checked back into the game.
The Warriors still pulled out the win, moving to 15-15 on the season.
Kerr later explained that Green chose to step away, and it was his own call not to put him back in. Both downplayed the confrontation afterward, with Green chalking it up to the emotional nature of the game.
“Tempers spilled over,” Green said. “We play basketball.
It’s an emotional game. People lose their emotions sometimes.
It happens. It is what it is.”
That kind of blunt honesty is vintage Draymond. And the Warriors have long accepted that with the fire comes the flare-ups. This isn’t the first time Green and Kerr have clashed - not even close - but history shows they’ve always found a way forward.
A History of Highs, Lows, and Loyalty
Go back to the 2016 NBA Finals. Green was suspended for Game 5 after hitting LeBron James below the belt - a pivotal moment that swung the series. But Kerr didn’t waver in his support.
“I told him, ‘You don’t owe anybody an apology. Without you, we’re not even here. We’re all on vacation at this point,’” Kerr said at the time.
That’s been the throughline of their relationship. Kerr has been critical when needed, but he’s also been fiercely loyal - even when Green’s behavior has crossed lines.
In the 2023 playoffs, Green stomped on Domantas Sabonis’ chest. In 2024, he struck Jusuf Nurkić and put Rudy Gobert in a chokehold.
And in the 2025 postseason, he racked up five technicals in the first round alone. Yet through it all, Kerr has stood by him.
But that doesn’t mean it’s been smooth sailing behind closed doors.
In 2019, during a particularly turbulent season, cameras caught Kerr muttering on the bench, “I’m so [expletive] tired of Draymond’s [expletive].” When asked later about it, Kerr kept it vague: “That’s private.” Green, as usual, didn’t shy away.
“It don’t bother me. [Stuff] happens,” he said.
“I’m sure there are plenty of times coaches are tired of players. There’s times players are tired of coaches.
That’s the nature of the game we play.”
That same season, Green famously got into it with Kevin Durant after a late-game possession against the Clippers. The argument spilled into the locker room and lingered long after.
Durant later admitted that the incident played a role in his decision to leave the team. Kerr, for his part, didn’t point fingers.
“If this had happened at a practice, you can cover it up,” Kerr said in a 2019 interview. “Actually, we had several things over the past few years that have happened that never made it out, and we’re really proud of that.”
Not Everything Stays Behind Closed Doors
Of course, not everything stayed in-house. Before the 2022-23 season, a video leaked of Green punching teammate Jordan Poole during practice. The footage went viral, but Kerr’s main concern wasn’t the punch - it was the leak.
“In 32 years, I’ve probably seen 20-plus fistfights at practice,” Kerr said. “That should not make it out beyond the walls of our practice facility.
And it did. That’s the problem.
We have to get better as an organization.”
That’s the Kerr-Green dynamic in a nutshell: intense moments, followed by introspection, and ultimately, a recommitment to the bigger picture.
When Green was suspended indefinitely - ultimately 12 games - for his actions involving Gobert and Nurkić, Kerr once again came to his defense.
“If we decided he wasn’t worth it, then we would have moved off of him years ago,” Kerr said. “But he’s worth it... not only because of the banners that are hanging out there, because he really is a wonderful human being.”
“He is somebody who I love deeply, who I care for, and in some ways I love him because of his flaws, because he’s so human.”
A Brotherhood That’s Bigger Than Basketball
That sentiment cuts to the heart of their relationship. For all the yelling and tension, there’s a foundation of mutual respect and deep trust.
Kerr has coached Green for 11 years now - through championships, controversies, and everything in between. And while their partnership has been tested time and again, it’s also been one of the defining forces behind the Warriors’ era of dominance.
It’s not always pretty. But it’s real - and it works.
So, yes, Draymond Green walked off during a game. And yes, Steve Kerr didn’t put him back in.
But if the past is any guide, they’ll hash it out, move on, and keep chasing wins together. Because for all the fireworks, this duo has always found a way to turn chaos into championships.