Thirteen months ago, Steve Kerr had a choice to make. Two job offers sat on the table in front of him: head east to join one of his former coaches and mentors, newly installed president of basketball operations Phil Jackson, in attempting to turn around the New York Knicks, or stay on the West Coast to take over a Golden State Warriors club that had significantly more talent and, coming off consecutive playoff berths and a 51-win season, significantly higher expectations.

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He chose wisely.

On Tuesday night, Kerr's Warriors beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 105-97, to finish off a 4-2 win in the 2015 NBA Finals and give Golden State its first Larry O'Brien Championship Trophy since 1975. In so doing, Kerr became the first rookie head coach to lead his team to the NBA championship since a young slick Pat Riley pulled off the feat with the Los Angeles Lakers in 1982.

It was the 83rd win of the season for the Warriors — a league-leading 67-15 during the regular season, 16-5 during the playoffs. That's the third-highest regular- and postseason win total in NBA history, behind only the 1995-96 and 1996-97 Chicago Bulls ... a pair of teams that just so happened to employ a sharpshooting reserve guard named Steve Kerr.

Maybe there's something to that — something special about this particular 49-year-old basketball lifer, something that's helped propel him to success at the highest levels throughout a basketball journey that's stretched from Arizona through a 15-year playing career during which he hoisted the O'Brien five times to his stints as a television commentator, general manager and even a lowly Yahoo! Sports contributor. Maybe. But Kerr wasn't thinking about himself in the moments after the final buzzer sounded and the Warriors began their celebration at center court of Quicken Loans Arena.

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What was he thinking about when ABC's Doris Burke approached, microphone in hand?

"The sacrifice that every guy made," he said. "From Andre [Iguodala] and David [Lee] stepping away from the starting lineup to, throughout the playoffs, different guys stepping in and playing, whatever matchup we needed. We just played, and they were all in it just to win. That' s the only thing that mattered. This is an amazing group of guys."

As he focused on the men he'd just led to the promised land, though, Kerr also spared a moment to give thanks to the men who'd led him to the top of the mountain.

"I'm thinking of Lute Olson," said Kerr, giving credit to the legendary coach for whom he played at the University of Arizona from 1983-88. "I'm thinking of Phil Jackson, Lenny Wilkens, Gregg Popovich. I've been blessed to play for the greatest coaches ever, and I've learned a ton from them, and they've all helped me get here."

View photos Steve Kerr takes it all in. (David Richard-USA TODAY Sports) More

Kerr employed the lessons he'd learned from each of his Hall of Fame teachers, and from countless other inspirations along the way, when he took over the Warriors last May, less than two weeks after the firing of Mark Jackson. The hard-nosed ex-point guard had led the formerly moribund franchise back to the postseason, but his run-ins with management and ownership led the organization to look for a new voice that could build on the stellar defensive foundation he'd laid while also maximizing the offensive gifts of the remarkable talents on hand — chiefly All-Star point guard Stephen Curry and sharpshooting backcourt partner Klay Thompson.

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