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Jonathan Kuminga #0 was traded by the Warriors to the Atlanta Hawks
The Golden State Warriors will be in Atlanta for their next game on Saturday night, and while the team is scrambling just to stay afloat amid a seemingly never-ending wave of disheartening injuries, playing the Hawks will take on a different meaning for coach Steve Kerr and the organization. It’s the first time that the Warriors will see Jonathan Kuminga in another uniform.
Kuminga’s struggles with Golden State after he was drafted in 2021 with the No. 7 overall pick are well-documented, and pretty well divided the team’s fan base. Many feel that Kerr failed Kuminga by being unable to bring him along into stardom, the kind of stardom his talent sometimes shows he should achieve.
Others side with Kerr, noting that Kuminga never really adjusted to being a role player on a roster that is–and should be–built around Stephen Curry, along with Klay Thompson at first and, later Jimmy Butler. Kuminga was too mistake-prone and too much of a below-average shooter to warrant a role on a team that needed him to play a certain way to get on the floor.
Warriors a Bad Situation for Jonathan Kuminga
The truth is probably somewhere in between. But, in an interview with the estimable Nick Friedell of The Athletic, Kerr said that picking the teenaged Kuminga put both player and organization in a bad position.
Kuminga needed to play. The Warriors needed to contend, and the two goals were not compatible.
“I think this is part of the modern NBA,” Kerr said. “You’re getting guys who are so inexperienced. I will tell you, the optimal circumstance for JK when he entered the NBA would have been to go to a bad team. Instead, he came to a championship team.
“But the way to develop in this league is to play 30, 35 minutes every night, make your mistakes, learn from your mistakes, grow, be able to do it out of the spotlight. And he wasn’t able to do any of those things (here), and I recognize that. That’s why I’m really hoping that the change in scenery will be what he needed.”
Up and Down in Atlanta
Kuminga came out like gangbusters after leaving the Warriors, making the trade look especially poor from the perspective of Kerr and his unwillingness to play him much. But Kuminga has since struggled with inconsistency and injury, putting the spotlight back on his shortcomings.
In all, Kuminga has averaged 14.8 points and 7.5 rebounds, while shooting 56.6% from the field. But he has only played six games, and has averaged just 8.3 points on 40.4% shooting from the field in his last three outings.
He did not play on Friday for the Hawks, and figures to be amped up to show the Warriors what they’re missing on Saturday. But Kerr, as he has said in the past, is actually pulling for Kuminga to succeed.
“This is kind of how the NBA works,” Kerr said. “I recognize that, and I take my share of the blame in that. And ultimately, I’m hopeful that whether it’s Atlanta or somewhere else that he finds his way in the NBA and has a great career, takes care of his family, because JK is a really good guy.”
Sean Deveney is a veteran sports reporter covering the NBA, NFL and MLB for Heavy.com. He has written for Heavy since 2019 and has more than two decades of experience covering the NBA, including 17 years as the lead NBA reporter for the Sporting News. Deveney is the author of 7 nonfiction books, including “Fun City,” “Before Wrigley became Wrigley,” and “Facing Michael Jordan.” More about Sean Deveney
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