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Programming note: Bulls-Warriors coverage starts tonight at 7:00 p.m. with Warriors Pregame Live on Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, and streaming live right here.

With their win over the Celtics Sunday night, the Warriors became the ninth team in NBA history to win 36 of its first 42 games.

The good news: Six of the previous eight teams went on to win the title that same year.

The bad news: The last two teams (the 2010-11 Spurs and 2005-06 Pistons) failed to capture the championship.

Steve Kerr, who won five rings as a player and appeared in the playoffs 11 times over his 15-year career, put things in perspective on Monday afternoon.

"We've got to remember what we're shooting for and what we're trying to do," Kerr told KNBR 680-AM. "And in order to achieve all those goals, we do have to get better.

"Winning a lot of regular season games is great, but it's not indicative of what's going to happen in the playoffs."

The Warriors are third in the NBA in offensive rating (110.3 points per 100 possessions), first in assists per game (27.2), first in FG percentage, first in 3-FG percentage, and lead the league at 111.1 points per game.

The Warriors lead the NBA in defensive rating (97.1 points per 100 possessions) and FG percentage defense (42.2), and are third in 3-FG percentage defense (32.0).

The stats are gaudy, so how can Golden State improve?

"It's your performance," Kerr said. "It's your standards and how you play each night is what's important, not what your record is. So we're trying to continue to get better all the time.

"The thing we have to remember is we're having this magicial year. It doesn't guarantee anything. And that's OK. We should have a great run here in the next eight or 10 years. Building this team around Steph and Klay, assuming they stay healthy. Draymond is gonna be a part of this franchise for the next 8-10 years. Harrison Barnes. We've got these young guys. We've got a great mix of veterans with Andre (Iguodala) and Boges (Andrew Bogut) and David Lee. So this is gonna be really good for the next few years and I think for the next 8-9 years."

Having played for two of the greatest coaches in NBA history (Phil Jackson and Gregg Popovich), Kerr understands what it's like to be around cultures that consistently breed winning basketball.

Kerr won back-to-back-to-back titles with Jackson and the Bulls, and was a part of championship teams with Popovich and the Spurs in '99 and '03.

Is he more like Jackson or Popovich?

"I'm more like Pop," Kerr said on May 20 when he was introduced as the Warriors' head coach. "Pop's very straightforward ... Personality wise, I'm a little more like Pop. Phil is kind of cryptic in what he says and mystical. He's been a huge influence on me with my daily life, but I'm probably more like Pop personality-wise."

Over the last 16 seasons, the Spurs won the title five times -- a remarkable accomplishment.

But it also means they haven't hoisted the Larry O'Brien Trophy 11 times, and Kerr wants Warriors fans to understand that.

"Think about the Spurs over 15 years, every year they're in the mix," Kerr explained. "They've won the title, they've lost in the first round several times, they've had heartbreaking defeats in the finals and conference finals, in the second round they've been swept.

"When I was in Phoenix as GM with Alvin (Gentry) as head coach, we swept the Spurs. So we have to be prepared as a franchise, and our fans, that we're on this great ride and the reason it's a great ride is because it's incredibly emotional. And there's gonna be heartbreak and there's gonna be joy and everything inbetween. Who knows when all that is gonna happen. The only thing we can do is try to get better all the time."

The Warriors may be the favorites to win the Western Conference, but don't forget who won the title last year, and don't forget who handed them their only home loss of the season.

"I retired 12 years ago, and the same three top players and the same coach are still over there," Kerr said following the Spurs' 113-100 win over the Warriors at Oracle Arena on Nov. 11. "It's insane. In 2003, I hung them up. And Duncan, Parker and Ginobili and Pop are still here. I wish they would go away."

"Tonight was a perfect example of a team that's been together forever. They know each other like the backs of their hands. They've been through every war. They've been through every scenario. They know how to execute. And we've been together six weeks with this coaching staff and our players. I'm actually encouraged."

Following the loss to San Antonio, the Warriors ripped off 16 straight wins.

Maybe Kerr was on to something...