Steve Kerr on Rockets' Santa Fe shooting tribute: 'Agonizing' that it will happen again

Sam Amick | USA TODAY

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HOUSTON – By the time the Houston Rockets’ tribute for the 10 Santa Fe High School shooting victims was ending on Thursday night, the cheers inside the Toyota Center belied the somber nature of the situation.

“We are Santa Fe strong,” the announcer screamed as tipoff neared.

But when Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta and CEO Tad Brown went to work putting this together, the hope was that they could provide a much-needed night of entertainment as a distraction. So they invited over 300 members of the school’s senior class to attend and gave them free tickets, then had the principal and so many first responders take part in the ceremony. The Rockets players linked arms on one side, while Golden State Warriors players stood solemnly on the other. There was an extended moment of silence, and the Santa Fe High School choir sang the national anthem.

The Santa Fe High School Choir performs the National Anthem with members of the Senior Class, First Responders, & Santa Fe ISD in attendance at Toyota Center. #SantaFeStrong 💪 pic.twitter.com/FOKFVp6nQ9 — NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 25, 2018

Warriors coach Steve Kerr knows firsthand the pain caused by gun violence. His father, Malcolm, was the president of American University in Beirut when he was assassinated on Jan. 18, 1984. And while Kerr was more than happy to be part of the tribute, the reality that these sorts of tributes are becoming so commonplace pains him.

The real action that must happen, he said, is gun reform.

“It’s important to note these events and these tragedies, and honor people,” Kerr told USA TODAY Sports. “But at the same time, it’s agonizing to know that there’s a pretty good chance that the two teams in the Finals are going to be doing the same thing in three weeks (because another shooting might have happened). There’s a really good chance of that, and that’s terrifying.

“It’s demoralizing that we just can’t seem to do anything about it as a country, and that we can’t see the obvious, which is that gun safety measures – I’m not talking about eliminating the Second Amendment from the Constitution – I’m talking about gun safety measures. There are things we can do that would undoubtedly cut back on some of these mass murders.”

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Kerr cited a recent CNN graphic that showed the worldwide rankings of school shootings since the start of 2009: America was first with 288, while Mexico was second – with eight.

“How could we not, as a country, do everything in our power to save lives?” he continued. “To anybody who is thinking about it, you have to imagine your child being the victim. You can’t just turn your head. You have to imagine it was you. It was your son, your daughter, and what that would mean, what that would feel like, because that’s very real for more and more people these days, and it’s devastating.”

Follow USA TODAY Sports' Sam Amick on Twitter @Sam_Amick