After the Warriors’ Loss, Steve Kerr Goes on a Wild Rant

Over the years, Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr has made some outrageous tirades regarding NBA refereeing. However, his tirade on Wednesday night following the Dubs’ shocking NBA Cup quarterfinal defeat to the Rockets might be one of his most venomous outbursts ever.

With 27 seconds remaining, the Warriors’ lead was reduced to one point after leading by as much as seven points in the last four minutes. With 11 seconds remaining, Steph Curry attempted a 3-pointer but missed, and the resulting rebound attempt devolved into a crazy scurry for a loose ball.

When Rockets player Fred Van Vleet dove for the loose ball after Gary Payton II grabbed it for the Warriors, Payton attempted to transfer the ball from the floor to a teammate.

Jonathan Kuminga of Golden State and Jalen Green of Houston both sprinted for the ball after that pass turned into a second loose ball. With 3.1 seconds remaining, crew chief Billy Kennedy sounded his whistle and ruled Kuminga a foul for reaching in. The Warriors’ final-second attempt was blocked, Green hit both of his free throws, and Houston prevailed 91-90.

Steve Kerr’s viral rant

After being queried about the call for a few minutes, Kerr proceeded to his press conference and stared blankly before launching into a two-minute tirade against it: “I’ve never seen a loose-ball foul on a jump-ball situation 80 feet from the basket with the game on the line,”  “I’ve never seen that. I think I saw it in college one time 30 years ago. Never seen it in the NBA. That is— I mean, that is unconscionable. I don’t even understand what just happened. Loose ball, diving on the floor, 80 feet from the basket and you’re going to give a guy two free throws to decide the game when people are scrambling for the ball. Just give them a timeout. Give them a timeout and let the players decide the game. That’s how you officiate, especially because the game was a complete wrestling match. They didn’t call anything.”

“Steph Curry got hit on the elbow, plain as day, on a jump shot. Just clubbed right on the arm – no call. You’ve established you’re just not going to call anything throughout the game. It’s a physical game. You’re going to call a loose-ball foul on a jump-ball situation with guys diving on the floor with the game on the line. This is a billion-dollar industry. You’ve got people’s jobs on the line. I am stunned. I’m stunned.”

“I give the Rockets credit. They battled back, they played great defense all night. But I feel for our guys. Our guys battled back, played their asses off and deserved to win that game – or at least have a chance for one stop at the end to finish the game. And that was taken from us by a call that I don’t think an elementary school referee would have made, because that guy would have had feel and said, ‘You know what, I’m not going to decide a game on a loose ball 80 feet from the basket.’”

“I don’t even understand what just happened”

The Guys reacted to Steve Kerr’s postgame comments after the late-game drama pic.twitter.com/cGBZTlTToT

— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) December 12, 2024

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