Ever since the Golden State Warriors lost in the Play-In Tournament and officially missed the 2026 NBA Playoffs, there has been plenty of speculation surrounding the future of longtime Warriors head coach Steve Kerr.
Kerr’s contract will expire this offseason, and he has said that he’ll take the next week or two to decide on his coaching future. Kerr shared a special moment with Stephen Curry and Draymond Green after their Play-In Tournament loss to the Phoenix Suns, and Green recently predicted that Kerr will retire.
As Golden State plans for Kerr’s potential departure, one notable candidate to replace him has emerged from the college-basketball ranks: Todd Golden of the Florida Gators.
Warriors Will Pursue Florida Gators Head Coach Todd Golden If Steve Kerr Departs
Yahoo Sports senior NBA analyst Kevin O’Connor reported that Golden is Golden State’s “main target at the college ranks” if Kerr does, in fact, walk away from coaching.
“Here’s what I’ve heard… If Steve Kerr leaves, the Warriors will pursue Florida Gators head coach Todd Golden, according to my league sources,” O’Connor said. “And within that ESPN story, they mentioned they might look at the college ranks.
“Golden is the coach that they’re targeting, and that’s in part because the Lacob family has a relationship with him. Golden was the head coach of the San Francisco Dons for three years before he went to Florida and won a national title there. They’ve been together, they’ve had lunches together.”
Golden was an assistant coach at San Francisco from 2016-2019, and then he was hired as the team’s head coach in 2019 after Kyle Smith’s departure for Washington State. He left for Florida in 2022, and he’s been there ever since.
The Gators won the national championship during the 2024-25 college basketball season after an incredible NCAA Tournament run. As a head coach, Golden has a 160-77 overall record and .675 winning percentage. In four years with the Gators, he has gone 103-41, including a 63-12 record over the last two seasons.
This year, Golden led the Gators to a 27-8 record and they returned to the NCAA Tournament, but they lost in the second round against Iowa.
Golden becomes an interesting candidate to watch given that he’s a widely respected coach with ties to Joe Lacob. But as O’Connor noted, he’s also a great situation at Florida, so it’s unclear if he would even be open to leaving the Gators.
“They’re one year removed from a national title,” O’Connor said. “[There’s] no guarantee he’d wanna be going to an uncertain situation with the Golden State Warriors.”
Kerr has coached the Warriors for the past 12 seasons, leading the franchise to four NBA championships. Kerr has a 604-353 coaching record all-time, giving him a 63.1% winning percentage.
