Pack your patience, Dub Nation. Eight days before the 2026-27 NBA regular-season opener, it is abundantly clear there will be moments of frustration as the Warriors apply the revamped offense coach Steve Kerr is trying to install.
One such moment came Tuesday night in a 101-89 preseason win over the Los Angeles Lakers.
Barely two minutes into the game, Kerr was hopping off the bench signaling for a timeout, displeased with seeing a flaw reappear after being directly addressed one day earlier: Turnovers that give easy points to opponents.
“We have, I think, 90 (actually 84) turnovers through four games,” Kerr told reporters Monday after practice. “I haven’t harped on them until now because I know we’re really teaching a lot of things that are new for our guys. But now is the time. We only have two exhibition games left. We start the season a week from (Wednesday), so much of the film session was about our decision-making and showing poor decisions from the other night. Time and score, risk/reward type stuff.
“I give our guys a lot of credit; they really took the film session to heart. In the scrimmage part of our practice today, they did a great job.”
Or so Kerr thought – until the third minute of the game.
When Kerr signaled for timeout with 9:27 remaining in the first quarter, it was three seconds after Brandin Podziemski flipped an errant hook pass that was stolen, launching Los Angeles toward an easy transition bucket.
Golden State’s immediate response was an 8-0 run for its first lead of the game (12-11). Problem solved? Well, no. The Warriors in the second quarter committed nine giveaways, giving the giddy Lakers 12 points that fed their 63-50 halftime lead.
“Just mindless turnovers that completely allowed the game to get away from us,” Kerr told reporters at T-Mobile Center in Las Vegas. “The first quarter, you could see we’re still need a lot of work on everything that we’re talking about. Winning the game in the margins.”
Not until the second half, mostly against LA’s second and third wave of reserves, did Kerr’s message seem to be absorbed. While the Warriors were cleaner and more careful, the Lakers submitted a woefully pathetic performance, with almost twice as many turnovers (18) as field goals (10) over the final 24 minutes.
“Much better second half, overall, the energy and effort,” Kerr said. “But we’ve got to execute better. We have to finish in transition, make the easy plays and we’re not close yet.”
The second-half recovery – nine turnovers, giving LA the Lakers only four points – was enough to secure Golden State’s third victory in its first five preseason games. The finale comes Friday night at Chase Center against the Portland Trail Blazers.
Kerr and his staff, as well as every member of the roster, understand that what matters most in the preseason is not the score, but process and execution.
“We’re not anywhere close to where we want to be,” Kerr said. “But we are working on the right things, we have a clear vision, the players are great guys, they’re committed, they want to do well. But our execution is just scattered at this point. You just got to keep working. It’s not going to happen overnight.”
Coming off this game, the Warriors have more to critique than celebrate. More areas of concern than confidence.
Consider that on a night when advanced vets Draymond Green and Al Horford were allowed to rest, solid point-of-attack defense and rim protection were MIA. Luka Dončić didn’t play, so Austin Reaves consistently got to the cup, torching a procession of defenders.
Consider that Yaxel Lendeborg, Golden State’s Great Rookie Hope, rolled his left ankle in the third quarter. He left briefly, got checked out and later returned. This is, at the very least, worth watching.
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