OAKLAND, Calif. -- Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr attended practice Saturday leading up to Game 1 of the Western Conference finals against the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday.
It's the first time Kerr has been at a home practice since he took a leave of absence in the middle of the first round of the playoffs to address back pain stemming from surgery he had almost two years ago.
For many players on the team, it was the first time they had seen Kerr in nearly two weeks.
"It's obviously great anytime you get to hear his voice, see his face," Stephen Curry said after practice. "He's obviously been doing his homework in between. His downtime is to help us get prepared for the series, and you know he misses being around the day-to-day routine, the atmosphere, practice and locker rooms and games and all that. So for him to even just have the energy and ability to be here means a lot. Hopefully, he's feeling better."
Curry said Kerr was fairly active in Saturday's preparations.
"He was one of the coaches in our pregame film, just giving his assessment of the series and things we need to do well," he said. "Obviously, Coach [Mike] Brown led most of it, but [Kerr] was present."
Brown said it was great to see Kerr at practice.
"For me, more than anything else, it was great to see him out here, especially during practice walking around, talking to guys," Brown said. "You really enjoy that because he's our leader. He's the guy that laid the foundation and got everybody headed in the right directions. And so the more he can be around, the better feel that all of us have. ... It was good to see him out here today."
Kerr also was present in a coaches meeting Friday.
The Warriors continue to say they don't know whether Kerr will be back on the sideline this postseason.