The San Francisco Standard’s Tim Kawakami claimed ESPN offered Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr a $7 million contract before he ultimately decided to ink a two-year extension with the NBA franchise. ESPN has now denied that.
What We Know: Kerr signed a two-year deal to remain as coach of the team on Saturday. He’s led the team since the 2014-2015 season. Before that, he spent several years as an NBA and college basketball analyst for Turner Sports. However, before the extension, Kawakami reported that ESPN was “aggressively” pursuing Kerr. He stated that ESPN had offered Kerr a contract of $7 million. ESPN has now denied that report.
What They Said: “We have too much respect for Coach Kerr. We were not even going to engage until he made a decision on coaching.” -ESPN President of Content Burke Magnus
What Remains Unclear: Whether Kerr had an interest in returning to the broadcast booth or studio at all. It also remains unclear where Kerr would have fit into ESPN’s plans, had it offered him a contract. Conceivably, one could deduce that a $7 million deal would mean he’d be the lead analyst, paired alongside Mike Breen. Tim Legler and Richard Jefferson currently make up the network’s top booth.
What It Means: Kerr remains one of the most sought-after voices in the NBA. If he had decided to leave the Warriors, it’s likely that ESPN wouldn’t have been the only potential suitor. Now that Amazon Prime Video and NBC are involved with the NBA, it’s likely they also would have been very interested in Kerr’s services.
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Garrett Searight is Barrett Media’s News Editor, which includes writing daily news stories, features, and opinion columns. He joined Barrett Media in 2022 after a decade leading several radio brands in several formats, as well as a 5-year stint working in local television. In addition to his work with Barrett Media, he is a radio and TV play-by-play broadcaster. Reach out to him at Garrett@BarrettMedia.com.
