Steve Kerr owns eight NBA championships as a player and a coach.
That incredible run of success started in the mid-1990s, with Michael Jordan putting Kerr and the Bulls on his back, and for that, the Warriors coach is forever grateful. Kerr spent five seasons alongside Jordan in Chicago (1993-98) and won three titles.
"If I hadn’t been on those Bulls teams, none of the rest of my career would have happened, and I mean that,” Kerr told ESPN's Scott Van Pelt on Sunday night.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
Those Bulls teams -- particularly the 1997-98 squad -- are the subject of ESPN's 10-part documentary series, "The Last Dance," and Kerr, like the rest of us, indulged in the first two episodes Sunday.
The '97-98 Bulls completed a championship three-peat before Jordan and others departed, either in retirement, free agency or trade. One day after the 1998-99 NBA lockout ended, Kerr was traded to San Antonio, where he won a fourth consecutive NBA title.
Kerr won one more championship as a player with the Spurs and added three as coach of the Warriors to his collection.
“I wouldn’t have become a coach of the Golden State Warriors if I hadn’t had that experience with the Bulls,” Kerr added. “So, I feel like every time I see Michael Jordan or Scottie Pippen, or Phil Jackson, I think back to that experience, and it kind of paved the way for the rest of my career -- both as a player, a broadcaster and a coach.
News
"So, I know how fortunate I was to be part of that run just like all of us do. That was a great group of guys -- very mature group, and we all knew exactly how lucky we were.
"And we made the most of it.”
[RELATED: Kevin Durant on how MJ, Steph dominated NBA]
Kerr, who averaged 8.2 points and 1.5 rebounds per game in his five Bulls seasons, hopes "The Last Dance" shows the sports world what it was like to play with Jordan. Younger fans can watch highlights of His Airness, but Kerr hopes they could feel the emotions of what it was like to share a roster with the Hall of Famer through the show.
“It was such an incredible thing to be a part of," Kerr said.