Why Kerr believes Warriors’ trip to Japan is ‘incredible’ originally appeared on NBC Sports Bayarea
Fresh off winning his fourth NBA title as a coach, Steve Kerr is already preparing for the Warriors’ title defense in the 2022-23 NBA season.
That said, the Warriors are slated to play two preseason games against Rui Hachimura and the Washington Wizards on Sept. 30 and Oct. 2 at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan, which elicited some mixed feelings from Kerr.
“It’s not the ideal way to go through training camp,” Kerr said on 95.7 The Game’s “Damon and Ratto” show last Thursday. “It’s not how you draw it up, but it’s an incredible opportunity to go to Tokyo, which is such a great city.”
Although Kerr isn’t a fan of the circumstances surrounding the Warriors’ visit to Japan, he hopes to see more of the country this time around.
Last year, Kerr was a member of Team USA’s coaching staff during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and helped coach the team to a gold medal.
While he was in Japan, however, most of the country was restricted due to the coronavirus pandemic. Overall, Kerr said that being in Japan will be an “amazing experience” for the players and coaches.
“Any sort of training camp disruption is far outweighed by the fact of being in Tokyo with the team and growing the game and seeing the Japanese people cheer on Steph Curry and the team. It’ll be a thrill,” Kerr concluded.
Considering Hachimura’s Japanese heritage and the Warriors’ jersey sponsor being Rakuten, Golden State playing games against the Wizards in Japan makes sense.
The last time the Warriors went overseas for preseason was before the 2017-18 NBA season, with Golden State and the Minnesota Timberwolves playing two games in China.
The Warriors and Timberwolves ended up splitting the two games, with both sides winning in blowout fashion.
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Regardless of the situation, Kerr and the Warriors have an opportunity to start their journey for another championship on the right note.
And what better way to start the journey than to do it in a locale like Japan?
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