Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr is back on the bench for the first time this season, ending a long leave of absence to steer the defending champions against the Indiana Pacers on Friday.
Kerr began his leave on October 1 to focus on recovering from a pair of off-season back operations after leading the Warriors, who include Australian Andrew Bogut, to a franchise-record 67 regular-season wins and the team's first NBA title in 40 years.
A veteran of 15 NBA campaigns as a player, the 50-year-old underwent surgery to repair a ruptured disc in July and had a follow-up procedure in September.
With assistant coach Luke Walton taking over, the Warriors did not miss a beat and own the league's best record at 39-4.
Golden State's record equals the second best mark through 43 games in NBA history, trailing only the Michael Jordan-led 1995-96 Chicago Bulls at 40-3.
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Walton was named coach of the month in November as the Warriors began the campaign with 24 consecutive victories, the most ever to start a season in US professional team sports.
