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Golden State Warriors All-Star forward Draymond Green is a pretty polarizing basketball player, and his head coach, Steve Kerr, can attest to that during their years together in the Bay Area.
Kerr and Green have feuded over the years, but four NBA titles together have also been the result.
In a recent in-depth interview with the New Yorker, Kerr admitted that Green pushed him to his limits. And while he “would do anything for him,” Kerr also admitted that Green crossed the line to the point of no return.
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Draymond Green reacts with head coach Steve Kerr after being ejected during the final moments of an NBA tournament game against the Phoenix Suns at the Mortgage Matchup Center in Phoenix, Arizona on April 17, 2026. The Suns defeated the Warriors 111-96. (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)
“He did things that I can never forgive him for, and yet I will do anything for him,” Kerr told the outlet.
It’s no secret that Kerr and Green have had to be separated, whether during a game or in a more private setting. In December 2025, Green was seen telling Kerr, “F— you,” which ultimately led to the star forward being sent to the locker room during a game against the Orlando Magic.
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“Yeah. I mean, people were picking us apart. And my first five years, we had three knockdowns and drags a year,” Kerr said of him and Green. “Part of it was just having to show the rest of the team that I’m in charge. You have to do things according to a set of standards. It’s a community that you build, not just a team – a little society with values and norms and expectations. And then you’re a community that has to police itself. The coach has to demand certain behaviors, certain habits. So for a long time we had a truce. I understood him so well. He understood me. But this year we had a large eruption in December.
Kerr called Green “such a unique person” who has a true spirit for the game of basketball. He needed it to play his position at just 6-foot-6, while forwards are typically much taller elsewhere in the league.
Since Green, 36, is closer to retirement than he is, the coaching is just speculation. He wasn’t usually in that mindset, but in a recent discussion, Green seemed open to the prospect of coaching after playing.
Kerr isn’t sure if his temperament is suited to that, though.
“I don’t know if he’ll be a coach. He definitely has the brains for it. I don’t know if he has the patience,” Kerr said. “He’s an incredibly passionate and emotional guy, and that passion and that energy has gotten him into trouble a lot of times. And I love him. I think he’s a really good-hearted person with an incredible brain, but if he’s going to coach, he’s going to have to learn to control some of that emotion and that desire and that fire that burns inside him, and that’s not an easy thing to do.”
Draymond Green and head coach Steve Kerr of the Golden State Warriors react during the fourth quarter against the Atlanta Hawks at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia on March 21, 2026. (By Griffin/Getty Images)
Green isn’t the most gifted NBA player in terms of physical stature, speed or strength. But Green knows how tenacious he can be as a defender, making the NBA All-Defensive Team nine times in his career while winning the 2016-17 Defensive Player of the Year award.
In fact, Kerr, who played with the iconic Chicago Bulls dynasty during his time on the floor, said Green was the best defender he’s ever seen in the league.
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“That says a lot, considering I played with Scottie Pippen and Dennis Rodman,” Kerr added. “The modern game demands a lot more than it did in the 1990s. You have to be able to guard all five positions, because there’s so much pace and energy and cross-matches. You go back on defense, you have to guard the guy in front of you. And then there’s the ‘pick-on’ play: the opposing team is going to bring the weaker defender into each pick-and-roll to gain an advantage.
“Draymond, he can defend any play, any position, any player. And he can also blow up the play behind the play if he’s not involved in the play because of his brain, his speed, his reach.”
It’s one of those up-and-down relationships, but one Kerr will never regret with Green – even if he crossed the finish line once or twice.
Draymond Green speaks to head coach Steve Kerr after receiving a technical foul in the fourth quarter against the Sacramento Kings during the NBA In-Season Tournament game at the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, California on November 28, 2023. (Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images)
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While Green has a player option for next season with the Warriors, all eyes are on Kerr as he mulls a big decision on whether or not he wants to return as head coach. He told the outlet it would be an easy decision if Green and Steph Curry retired this year, but that’s not the case.
Kerr said the Warriors will discuss their vision for the future in the coming weeks, but he doesn’t know at this time if he will be a part of it.
