Grant Cohn: Warriors need an answer on Steve Kerr soon

The Warriors just dismissed another playoff opponent four games to zero Monday night and everything seems to be going well for them. But one issue looms over the postseason.

Steve Kerr. He is the eight-hundred-pound gorilla in the room.

Or not in the room. He is out of the room. His issue is his absence. Kerr has missed the past six games due to complications from a back surgery he had in 2015, complications which also forced him to miss 43 games last season.

For the past two years, the Warriors have had one-and-a-half head coaches: the interim head coach (first Luke Walton, now Mike Brown) — and the head coach, Kerr, who fades in and out of the picture.

A championship team needs to have one coach, not one and a half. Not knowing who the coach is can be confusing and disruptive over the long haul. If Kerr's condition doesn't permanently improve soon, say by July, he should step down or the Warriors should permanently replace him.

That may sound harsh. Kerr is a nice man and a good coach and we pull for him to recover and return to the bench. But, the NBA is a business. And in this business, the team is more important than Kerr's personal struggle. Kerr should understand this. The team should understand this as well.

I assume the Warriors already are thinking along these lines. Team owner Joe Lacob revealed as much Friday in an interview with Bloomberg Radio.

Lacob told the interviewer that Kerr had another procedure on Thursday to try to fix his spinal leak. 'I've never really heard of many people having this problem for this long. We really feel bad for him, the players, everybody understands it. We just have to be in his court here and support whatever it takes for him to get back and I'm sure they will eventually solve it. Hopefully sooner rather than later and hopefully we'll have him coaching on the court sooner rather than later.'

Key phrase: 'Sooner rather than later.' Sure sounds like Lacob has lots of questions about Kerr's prognosis.

During the first two rounds of the playoffs, the Warriors didn't need a head coach to beat the Blazers and the Jazz. But the Warriors will need a head coach in the next round, the Western Conference finals. And they'll need a head coach in the NBA Finals if they make it that far.

The Warriors' championship window is open now. They have to maximize their window because you never know when it will slam shut. Look at the Giants. They thought their window wouldn't shut this soon, but it did.

In the Warriors' case, Stephen Curry could get injured again. Or Kevin Durant could get injured again. Or Curry could sign with another team this offseason — he will be a free agent. Or Durant could sign with another team this offseason — he has a player option in his contract he can exercise to become a free agent if he chooses. Nothing is guaranteed for the Warriors. The window could slam shut and it could happen fast.

I'm sure Lacob knows this. And it sounds like he already is planning for the future while setting a deadline for Kerr. Some people have criticized Lacob for voicing his concerns. Wrong. He's the owner. He's supposed to be concerned. If Kerr's latest procedure doesn't fix his spinal leak soon, the Warriors will have to move on without him, and the rest of the playoffs will become a tryout for the interim Mike Brown.

Is Brown good enough to coach the Warriors? Is he up to leading such a talented team? He may or may not be. Brown has been fired as head coach three times during his career — twice by the Cavaliers, and once by the Lakers just six games into second season with the team. He may not be head-coach material.

If he isn't, the Warriors need to learn that now so they can put together a list of coaches who can replace the Brown-Kerr combo. A lot of excellent coaches would want to come to the Warriors and could succeed with this team. Believe me, Kerr isn't the only one.

Luke Walton's record in Kerr's absence last season was 39-4. Brown's record currently is 6-0.

I'm not saying Kerr is overrated. He's a good coach. But when he came to the Warriors, he struck the mother lode of talent. Had he chosen instead to coach the Knicks and work for his mentor, Phil Jackson — Kerr considered it — he might have been an abysmal failure.

The Warriors have tied themselves to Kerr long enough. Have hung with him for two years. They need him to coach now — or very soon. If he can't, they should give him a new job. Make him a senior advisor to the head coach. Call him the 'Coach Emeritus.' Keep him around. Continue to help him with his back and allow him to help the team and the new head coach. But don't allow him on the bench. The Warriors need a constant figure there. Kerr will have to recede to the background if he doesn't get well real soon.

So much at stake for the team and, remember, the team comes before the coach even if he is a nice guy.

Grant Cohn writes sports columns and the 'Inside the 49ers' blog for The Press Democrat's website. You can reach him at grantcohn@gmail.com.