Steve Kerr says Warriors’ new offense is ‘not anywhere close’ after 104 preseason turnovers

LAS VEGAS — Oct. 14, 2026 — The Warriors erased a 20-point deficit and beat the Lakers 101-89 in preseason. Steve Kerr still left T-Mobile Arena talking about how far the new offense still has to go.

“We’re not anywhere close to where we want to be,” Kerr said after the game, in comments carried by NBC Sports Bay Area’s Monte Poole. “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.”

Mindless turnovers, then a cleanup

Golden State finished with 20 turnovers Tuesday — 104 through five exhibitions — and only 24 assists. Kerr had already flagged the problem after Monday’s practice, telling reporters the Warriors had roughly 90 giveaways through four games (the actual count was 84) and that film that day focused on decision-making, time-and-score and risk-reward.

“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,” Kerr said Monday. “We only have two exhibition games left.”

That message did not stick for long. Barely two minutes into Tuesday’s tip, Kerr called timeout after Brandin Podziemski’s errant hook pass was stolen for an easy Lakers bucket. The second quarter piled up nine more giveaways that handed Los Angeles 12 points and a 63-50 halftime lead. Kerr labeled them “mindless turnovers that completely allowed the game to get away from us,” and said the first quarter showed the group still needs “a lot of work on everything that we’re talking about. Winning the game in the margins.”

The second half was cleaner — nine turnovers that produced only four Lakers points — and enough for Golden State’s third win in five preseason games. “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.”

Five-out habits, not random chaos

The frustration sits on top of a deliberate scheme change. Kerr has pushed a wider five-out approach this camp — more consistent spacing, cuts and recognition after made baskets — and has said the staff is reimagining how Golden State practices and teaches, moving away from some of the random actions the Warriors leaned on in past seasons.

“We’re trying [to] create more space, more consistent cutting, more consistent patterns so that they’re seeing the same things over and over again,” Kerr said earlier this month in an ABC7 interview with Larry Beil. “And we’re working on the fundamentals that go with that.”

Tuesday’s mix made the gap obvious. Without Draymond Green and Al Horford (rest) and with Kristaps Porzingis still out indefinitely, the Warriors’ first-half pick-and-roll defense struggled against Austin Reaves while the offense lost structure. Rookie Yaxel Lendeborg helped spark the comeback on the glass before rolling his left ankle and returning; De’Anthony Melton finished with six steals; Will Richard hit three fourth-quarter threes. The bright spots did not erase the 20 turnovers or 10 missed free throws.

One exhibition left

Golden State closes the preseason Friday at Chase Center against the Portland Trail Blazers, eight days before the regular-season opener. Kerr’s public standard has not softened: praise the effort, keep the vision, and demand cleaner decisions before the games count.

More on WhyNBA: Kerr names Brandon Williams the backup point guard and Porzingis remains out indefinitely.