The Golden State Warriors got their season off to a great start on Tuesday night when they defeated the New Orleans Pelicans comfortably. It was Luke Walton's first win as the interim head coach of the Warriors, as he is filling in for head coach Steve Kerr while he recovers from back surgery. Kerr does not have a timetable for when he might return, but he hopes it's soon and he is reportedly considering traveling with the team on its road trip, according to Ethan Sherwood Strauss of ESPN.
Kerr was at the game on Tuesday night, as he received his ring for the Warriors championship last season, but he watched from the locker room. Kerr has also been present at recent practices, but he is not yet healthy enough to get back on the sidelines and be the full-time coach.
The Warriors play their next two games on the road in Houston and then in New Orleans, and Kerr is considering traveling with the team. The head coach will likely not be able to coach, but he wants to be around the team and he feels as though being home is no better for him than being on the road with the team.
Kerr recently got back to doing some light workouts, including doing yoga and using the elliptical machine, and he thinks that has helped him out from a mental standpoint. Kerr says that it is killing him that he can't coach the team right now, but he knows he needs time to recover and he truly believes he won't miss much more time.
Kerr underwent back surgery at the end of July to alleviate a ruptured disk. He says that he is still experiencing symptoms and he is still in pain, but he is mostly pleased with his progress, which gives him confidence he will be back before long. Kerr can rest comfortably knowing that his team is one of the best in the NBA, and Walton seems like he will be just fine filling in. Walton said that Kerr's advice to him before coaching his first game was "don't worry, we won 67 games last year and I didn't know what I was doing at all," probably a little too modest, but he knows inexperienced head coaches can be successful in the NBA.
