When Yaxel Lendeborg said in June that Warriors coach Steve Kerr is biased against rookies, it would have been plausible to wonder if he had been talking to Will Richard, who as a rookie last season bore the brunt of Kerr’s most visible tirade.Plausible, yes. Lazy? Definitely.
Richard says he and Kerr quickly addressed the incident that seemed ripe for strife and have formed a comfortable relationship. That all is good after the coach erroneously blasted him in March during a game against the Knicks at Madison Square Garden.
“We were turning the ball over a lot,” Richard told NBC Sports Bay Area. “I was able to see both sides. It probably looked way worse than what it seemed. But me and Steve, we talk about it. We still joke about it.”
It looked inflammatory because Kerr lit into Richard after he stole a Landry Shamet pass and went streaking downcourt for a potential layup or dunk. Brandin Podziemski recovered the ball and tossed ahead of Richard, who tried to keep it in bounds with a behind-the-back pass that resulted in Golden State’s eighth turnover of the second quarter.Kerr called a timeout and yelled at...