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Steve Kerr's status for the NBA Finals remains an uncertainty. The third-year Golden State Warriors coach has missed his team's last 10 playoff games as he deals with complications from back surgery two years ago entering the team's third straight Finals appearance.
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"Just day-by-day," Kerr told ESPN website The Undefeated of his status on Monday night after the Warriors completed a four-game sweep of the San Antonio Spurs with a 129-115 win in Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals.
Kerr, 51, traveled with the team for the final two games of the series in San Antonio for the first time since he took an indefinite leave on April 23. Sources told ESPN that Kerr continues to be in "a significant amount of pain and discomfort" and that he has not made significant progress.
Warriors owner Joe Lacob pledged his support to his friend and coach.
"He is a fantastic coach and a fantastic human being and a great friend," Lacob told ESPN. "I told him the other day, 'I don't even want to talk about or think about anything other than winning this championship. You can contribute in any way you can, and we'll worry about the future in the future.'"
Spurs coach Gregg Popovich called Kerr's health woes a "crap situation."
"He's done a phenomenal job and when you're going through that pain every day and that frustration of not being able to do what you want to do, it's hard to enjoy it at the fullest level," Popovich told reporters before Monday's game. "So I feel bad for him all the time. But I'm hopeful stuff will get figured out."
Golden State awaits the winner of the Eastern Conference Finals series between the Boston Celtics and Cleveland Cavaliers. The NBA Finals begins June 1 at Oracle Arena in Oakland, Calif.
