OAKLAND – Steve Kerr said Tuesday that he's not reading newspapers or websites, not following social media and not watching or listening to ceaseless prattling of talking heads on TV and radio.
It appears, based on interviews conducted Tuesday afternoon, the Warriors coach is not fibbing about existing, at least temporarily, in a vacuum.
Upon being told that New Orleans fired coach Monty Williams Tuesday morning – 17 days after the Pelicans were bounced by the Warriors in the first round – Kerr expressed shock.
"I had no idea," said Kerr, adding that he thought Williams did a terrific job. "I didn't know."
Kerr also claimed to be unaware of the constantly changing narrative as this Western Conference Semifinals series between the Warriors and Grizzlies plays out. The latest is that the Warriors, said to be in trouble entering Game 3, have gained a big edge by winning that game.
"It's chatter, 24 hours of chatter," Kerr said. "I don't know any of this. Honestly, I don't read anything during the playoffs. That's why I didn't know about Monty."
To recap for Steve and others, here's the timeline:
Game 1, a decisive Warriors victory, invited chatter about a possible sweep.
Game 2, a stunning Grizzlies triumph behind the return of injured point guard Mike Conley, at imposing Oracle Arena no less, shifted momentum and the home-court advantage to Memphis.
When the Grizzlies dominated Game 3 in FedEx Forum, the Warriors skeptics sprinted into the streets to shout that the Warriors lacked necessary size and were too dependent on jump shots.
But after the Warriors won Game 4 at the "Grindhouse," tying the series at two games apiece, the money lines wasted no time abandoning the Memphis camp and scampering over to the Warriors, who are heavy favorites to finish the Grizzlies.
"Consider the source," Kerr said of the surrounding noise. "As far as I know, none of the guys on the team or on the coaching staffs has said anything about this being over when it was 2-1 or now that it's 2-2.
"This is playoff basketball, and sometimes in the age of Twitter there can be a tendency to forget that each game is an entity unto itself."
Losing a game means analysis and adjustments for the next game. Winning means anticipating what those adjustments might be.
Meanwhile, the panic meter shifts from one team to the other.
"But you can't get wrapped up in that, because it means nothing," Kerr said. "I understand it. It's great for the fans. It's water-cooler talk. And there's so much interest in what we're doing.
"But we don't think about that. We just think about the game. That's kind of what we do. And that's going to continue. We just keep playing. I encouraged all of our guys to watch a movie or read a book during the playoffs, instead of listening to all the chatter. That's what I try to do."
