With his team losing two straight games to fall into a must-win situation, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr on Thursday heeded the advice of a trusted member of his staff to put the club back on track in the NBA Finals.
The advice came not from veteran assistants Alvin Gentry and Ron Adams, nor did it come from young assistant Luke Walton. It did not come from player development coaches Jarron Collins and Bruce Fraser.
No, the advice came from further down the organization chart, from video-scouting specialist Nick U’Ren.
He suggested that Kerr change his starting lineup, replacing 7-foot center Andrew Bogut with 6-7 forward Andre Iguodala, who hadn’t started a game all season.
“It was his idea,” Kerr said of U’Ren. “He brought it to us this morning. We had debated some other things the other night after Game 3, but you always want to let these things simmer before you make a decision.
The first lesson in leadership is to utilize all the resources available. You have to respect the fact that Kerr listened to his video-scouting specialist and obviously listened emphatically.
The second lesson in leadership is that Kerr didn't hesitate to give credit where credit was due. This makes an incredible healthy working environment for those in the organization.
