Warriors Get Major Jonathan Kuminga News Before Saturday’s Revenge Game

The Golden State Warriors are heading to Atlanta on Saturday for what has been circled on the calendar since the trade deadline. Jonathan Kuminga left Golden State under difficult circumstances last month, dealt to the Atlanta Hawks alongside Buddy Hield in the deal that brought Kristaps Porzingis to the Bay. The reunion was always going to carry weight.

Now there is a decision to factor in. The Hawks are playing a back-to-back this weekend, with Friday night’s game against the Houston Rockets in Houston followed by Saturday’s matchup with Golden State in Atlanta. Kuminga is managing a knee injury that has limited his availability since joining the Hawks, and Atlanta has made a call on how they plan to handle it.

The decision tells its own story.

Hawks Make Kuminga Call With Warriors Squarely in Mind

Kuminga will sit out Friday’s game against the Rockets, NBC Sports Bay Area’s Dalton Johnson reported, but is expected to be available for Saturday’s game against Golden State, barring any last-minute change. The Hawks are resting him specifically to have him ready for the Warriors matchup.

It is a revealing decision. Houston is the stronger team on paper, especially with Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler both absent from Golden State’s lineup. From a pure win probability standpoint, Atlanta would be better served having Kuminga available against the Rockets. They chose differently.

The message is clear. This game means something.

What Kuminga Has Shown in Atlanta

Kuminga’s start with the Hawks has been up and down. The knee issue pushed back his debut and has limited his availability since. But when healthy, the glimpses have been there.

He opened his Atlanta account with three straight double-figure scoring games, including a 27-point effort. Then the knee forced him to miss three games. A quiet stretch followed. He found form again on Wednesday, dropping 16 points with five rebounds and three assists in just over 18 minutes off the bench in a 135-120 win over the Dallas Mavericks.

Across six games in Atlanta, Kuminga is averaging 14.8 points on nearly 57% shooting, with 7.5 rebounds and 2.7 assists in just under 23 minutes per game. The efficiency has been encouraging. The role has been cleaner. The frustrations that defined his final months in Golden State have not followed him to Georgia.

He spent years pushing for a more defined role under Steve Kerr before signing a two-year, $48.5 million deal last September after months of contract disputes. The relationship deteriorated steadily. The trade deadline brought a clean break for both sides.

What to Expect on Saturday

The Warriors will be shorthanded. Curry remains out with runner’s knee. Butler is done for the season with a torn ACL. Al Horford and Seth Curry are also sidelined. Porzingis and De’Anthony Melton are playing Friday night in Detroit, which raises questions about their availability in Atlanta less than 24 hours later.

Kuminga will be rested. He will be motivated. And he will be facing a team that is running low on bodies.

Final Word for the Warriors

The Warriors traded Kuminga and moved on. That chapter is closed. Saturday is just another game on a brutal road trip with the play-in race tightening by the day.

But Kuminga is not treating it that way. Neither are the Hawks. They rested him against a better team to make sure he was ready for this one.

Golden State will find out soon what that means.

Keith Watkins Keith Watkins is a sports journalist covering the NBA for Heavy.com, with a focus on the Golden State Warriors, Boston Celtics, and Los Angeles Lakers. He previously wrote for FanSided, NBA Analysis Network, and Last Word On Sports. Keith is based in Bangkok, Thailand. More about Keith Watkins