Steve Kerr Cheers on Harris and Walz, a Fellow Coach

The Golden State Warriors coach, well known for his liberal views, wove plenty of sports references into his paean to the Democratic ticket. He also teased Tim Walz a bit.

Share full article

VideotranscriptBackbars0:00/1:08-0:00

transcript

I believe in a certain kind of leadership. I believe that leaders must display dignity. I believe that leaders must tell the truth. I believe that leaders should be able to laugh at themselves. I believe leaders must care for and love the people they are leading. I believe leaders must possess knowledge and expertise, but with the full awareness that none of us has all the answers. And when you think about it that way, this is no contest. With Kamala Harris and Tim Walz, I see all those qualities. They have devoted their lives to serving other people. Whether Vice President Harris was defending her community in the courtroom or Governor Walz was inspiring the next generation in the classroom or on the field, for that matter. By the way, coach to coach, that guy is awesome.

By Kellen Browning

Reporting from Chicago

Aug. 19, 2024Updated 10:54 p.m. ET

Steve Kerr, the coach of the Golden State Warriors, praised Vice President Kamala Harris onstage on Monday night and urged Americans to come together to reject former President Donald J. Trump as if they were one united basketball team.

“Think about what our team achieved with 12 Americans in Paris, putting aside rivalries to represent our country,” Mr. Kerr said at the Democratic convention in Chicago, referring to the Olympic gold medal he won this month as the coach for the U.S. team. “Now imagine what we could do with all 330 million of us playing on the same team.”

Mr. Kerr, one of the most outspoken liberal voices in American sports, employed the high-minded language that Bay Area sports fans have come to expect from him when he opines on pressing issues of the day, especially gun violence.

“Leadership, real leadership,” Mr. Kerr said, is “not the kind that seeks to divide us, but the kind that recognizes and celebrates our common purpose.”

But he also wove in plenty of sports references, speaking in an arena where he won three N.B.A. championships as a member of the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls.

“Coach to coach, that guy’s awesome,” Mr. Kerr said of Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, Ms. Harris’s running mate and a former high school football coach. But, he joked, Mr. Walz’s defensive coaching left a little to be desired. “Way too much reliance on the blitz, in 1999, against Mankato East,” Mr. Kerr said.

We are having trouble retrieving the article content.

Please enable JavaScript in your browser settings.

Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.