Steve Kerr Grew His Net Worth as an NBA Player and Coach
As a retired NBA player-turned-coach, Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr has amassed a net worth of about $35 million. Here's how he made millions.
May 11 2022, Published 2:37 p.m. ET
Golden State Warriors Head Coach Steve Kerr wasn’t at Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinals to see his team win on May 10. Kerr tested positive for COVID-19 and had to pass the reins to assistant coach Mike Brown. According to Celebrity Net Worth, as a retired NBA player-turned-coach, Kerr has amassed a net worth of about $35 million.
Steve Kerr
Golden State Warriors Head Coach
Net worth: $35 Million
Steve Kerr has been the head coach of the Golden State Warriors NBA team since 2014. In his first year as the coach, Kerr had the best record of wins for a rookie coach in NBA history. Before his coaching career, Kerr spent 15 years on the court as an NBA player. He's won five NBA Championships — three with the Chicago Bulls and two with the San Antonio Spurs. In 2016, he was named NBA Coach of the Year.
Age: 56
Birthplace: Beirut, Lebanon
Alma Mater: University of Arizona
Wife: Margot (Brennan) Kerr
Children: Nick, Maddy, and Matthew
Kerr has been the Warriors coach since 2014 when he signed a $25 million five-year contract. Kerr’s contract was extended in 2018. Currently, he's one of the top 10 highest-paid NBA coaches, earning an annual salary of about $8.7 million.
Kerr is the winningest rookie NBA coach of all time.
In his first year as the Warriors coach, Kerr became the winningest rookie head coach in NBA history. He led the Warriors to win 21 of their first 23 games, and the team ended the 2015–2016 season with a 67–15 record and the NBA Championship. Under Kerr’s leadership, the Warriors have won three NBA Championships.
“I'm the luckiest coach in NBA history because I inherited a team that was already really good," Kerr said in a 2014 Sporting News article.
Kerr spent 15 years as an NBA player.
Kerr knows the game of basketball and what it takes to be an NBA champion. He spent 15 years on the court as a player for several NBA teams.
Kerr was born and raised in Beirut, Lebanon. He was only 18 years old when his father, Malcolm, president of the American University of Beirut, was shot and killed by Islamic Jihad militants.
After his father’s assassination, the remaining Kerr family – Steve, his mother, and three siblings – sued the Iranian government under the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996. The family’s story is chronicled in the 2008 book One Family's Response to Terrorism: A Daughter's Memoir, written by Kerr’s sister Susan Kerr van de Ven.
Kerr went to college at the University of Arizona and played basketball for the Wildcats. He was also named to the USA Basketball team in 1986 and played in the FIBA World Championship held in Spain.
Kerr played for the Chicago Bulls with Michaell Jordan.
Kerr started his NBA career in 1988 when he was drafted by the Phoenix Suns. After sitting on the bench for most of his rookie year with the Suns, he was traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers in 1989. Kerr played with the Cavaliers for three seasons until he was traded to the Orlando Magic in 1992.
The Magic must not have been a good fit for Kerr. In 1993, he left the team and signed with the Chicago Bulls. The decision was a game-changer for Kerr’s career. When NBA star Michael Jordan returned to the Bulls in the 1995–1996 season, after a short sabbatical to chase his dream of playing baseball, Kerr became “an integral part” of the team’s three NBA championships in 1996, 1997, and 1998, reports NBA.com.
According to NBA.com, Kerr is best known for throwing a Game 6 buzzer-beater in the 1997 NBA Finals vs. Utah after Jordan passed him the ball.
Kerr took his winning style to the San Antonio Spurs in 1999 and helped the Spurs win their first NBA Championship. The Spurs also won the championship with Kerr on the team in 2003. Kerr announced his retirement as an NBA player after the Spurs won the 2003 NBA Finals.