Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr captured his ninth NBA Finals victory on Thursday when his team defeated the Boston Celtics to capture their fourth title in eight seasons. Despite the monumental accomplishment, he wanted to make sure he gave his opponent their flowers.
"I want to say congratulations to the Boston Celtics on a great series. They were incredible," Kerr said in his postgame media availability. "Their defensive athleticism and length and toughness and was really tough to overcome. And they, they had us on the ropes in this series and they had a tremendous season.
"Since I've been here, we've lost in the finals twice and it's devastating. You know, to get this far and to come up short, and I've got a lot of friends across that hall. Ime (Udoka) and Will Hardy. Damon Stoudamire, Aaron Miles, you know a bunch of really good friends and guys I've coached in FIBA. Jayson Tatum ,Jaylen Brown, Derrick White. Great, great group of guys, and so I genuinely feel for them because I know what it's like to lose at this point. But they had an amazing run and it was a great, great series."
Kerr's words likely won't help heal the wounds that the Celtics and their fans are feeling following the loss, but they do help spell out just how special this season was for Boston.
