SAN FRANCISCO — In the aftermath of a disappointing 136-131 Sunday night loss in Portland, Golden State Warriors owner Joe Lacob had a brief email interaction with a fan that made its way to the public.
The Warriors’ fan, Justin Dutari, sent Lacob a critical note minutes after the game, telling him that the team needs a «real second option,» that Jimmy Butler’s «tools are being underutilized» and blamed the lack of positional size on the roster.
«I am so frustrated,» Dutari ended his email.
Shortly after, Lacob sent back this response: «You can’t be as frustrated as me. I am working on it. It’s complicated. Style of play. Coaches desires regarding players. League trends. Jimmy is not the problem.»
Dutari published the interaction on Reddit. The Warriors confirmed it was Lacob who sent the response.
The back-and-forth, while brief, peeled back the curtain on the growing angst bubbling behind the scenes. The Warriors are 13-14 and stuck in eighth place in a crowded Western Conference despite loftier preseason expectations in the fading days of the Stephen Curry era.
Lacob’s email put a particular spotlight on Warriors coach Steve Kerr, who has held firm to his unique offensive system built around the strengths of Curry and Draymond Green throughout their 12 seasons (and four title runs) together, even if it conflicts with the ideal system for the younger layer of the roster.
«Not a big deal,» Kerr said, acknowledging he’d seen the email. «Not concerned about anything like that.»
Kerr is in the final season of his current contract and announced during training camp that he wasn’t seeking a contract extension, preferring to let the season play out before discussing his future with the franchise.
Lacob and general manager Mike Dunleavy have continually voiced a firm level of support for Kerr. Curry and Dunleavy have both stated a desire to keep Kerr around past this season.
«We’re all frustrated,» Kerr said. «Joe is frustrated. I’m frustrated. Steph and [Green], everybody’s frustrated. This is kind of how the league works. I hate when people are going to post private emails. Imagine if everyone’s emails were just publicly posted, how tough that would be to live our lives.
«Joe supports me 100 percent. I support him. We have a great connection. We’ve had so much continuity here. Our stable environment in our organization is one of our strengths.»
