After leading the U.S. men’s basketball team to the Olympic gold medal in Paris, head coach Steve Kerr wanted to inspire another group of Americans.
Kerr, the head coach of Team USA and the NBA’s Golden State Warriors, appeared on stage at the Democratic National Convention on Monday night to endorse Kamala Harris and Tim Walz as the next president and vice president of the United States.
The 58-year-old took the stage at the United Center, home of the Chicago Bulls, the team Kerr led to three straight championships between 1996 and 1998, and delivered an inspiring speech to the convention delegates.
But while the main message of the coach’s speech was a call for unity, Kerr couldn’t resist firing a shot across the aisle as well.
In his farewell speech in Chicago, Kerr issued a warning to his rival Donald Trump, just as he would to his opponents on the court, drawing on the iconic celebration of one of his star players.
Team USA head coach Steve Kerr appeared on stage at the Democratic National Convention
“When the results are in that night, we can say to Donald Trump, like the great Steph Curry, ‘Good evening,’” he concluded, resting his head in his hands like his Warriors idol.
Curry recently celebrated the infamous “Night Night” party in Paris during the Olympic gold medal match against the host country. According to Kerr, this triumph was the embodiment of American core values.
“The last time he was in a packed basketball arena was in Paris, France,” he said. “Nine days ago,One of the best players in the world – 12 incredible American men – came together to win Olympic gold. The next night I was back in that same building to watch more of the best players in the world – our incredible American women – do the same on June 12th.
“I can’t think of a better metaphor for what this country stands for than the way Team USA came together at the Olympics.
“We had players from all over our great country, players who had trained and fought tirelessly, who had shed tears trying to beat each other their entire careers, who had come together to wear the red, white and blue. And when we won, the American flag was raised and the national anthem played and the gold medals were around the necks of our players as they held their hands over their hearts. That was the proudest moment of my life.”
Kerr drew on the success of LeBron James, Steph Curry and co in the French capital this summer to call on the American people to unite in support of the Democratic ticket against Donald Trump on November 5.
“The joy, the compassion, the dedication to our country that we saw at the Olympics is what Kamala Harris and Tim Walz have and is what our country needs. Real leadership. Not the kind that tries to divide us, but the kind that recognizes and celebrates our common purpose.
‘Think of what our team accomplished with 12 Americans in Paris who put aside rivalries to represent our country. Now imagine what we could do with all 330 million of us playing on the same team — not as Democrats, not as Republicans, not as liberals, but as Americans who know that the greatness of this nation comes not from any one of us, but from each of us doing his or her part to build a more perfect union.’
That vision is what this campaign is all about. That’s why I’m here tonight. And that’s why I’m going out every day to help people vote on November 5th to elect Kamala Harris and Tim Walz as the next president and vice president of the United States.
More to come.
