The 17-16 Golden State Warriors haven’t been anywhere near the world-beaters they may have aspired to be after signing former five-time All-Star Al Horford and bringing in guards Seth Curry and De’Anthony Melton (the latter of whom they had signed the summer prior before trading when he tore his ACL) to complement their revised core comprising aging Hall of Famers Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green, plus young guns Moses Moody, Brandin Podziemski, and - maybe - Jonathan Kuminga.
Kuminga, 23, inked a two-season, $46.8 million after a protracted restricted free agency cold war during the offseason, that crept into Warriors training camp.
The 6-foot-7 pro began the season as LA’s starting power forward. But things have taken a downturn of late.
Lately, he’s been fleetingly in and out of longtime head coach Steve Kerr’s rotations. Kuminga has barely played for the Warriors this month, appearing in just four of Golden State’s 12 December games despite being healthy.
Now, Kerr has rationalized his decision to demote Kuminga with a bold claim, per Sam Gordon of The San Francisco Chronicle.
“It’s tough because he’s not really a short-minute player. I played a bunch of guys eight, 10 minutes,” Kerr claimed of his decision to largely bench Kuminga this month. “JK is a guy who needs his rhythm. He’s not like a Gui (Santos) who’s going to come in or Pat (Spencer) and just fly around and play with great energy for four minutes and come out. He needs some rhythm. He always has to stay ready. There’s a pathway there, but right now, it’s not there. But things change quickly in the NBA.”
This is most likely a generous prevarication.
Kuminga will become trade-eligible on Jan. 15, a few weeks prior to this season’s Feb. 5 trade deadline. Kuminga has struggled with health issues throughout the past two seasons, and Golden State is likely looking to preserve his body so that it can extract a maximal trade haul.
Across the 18 games he has played, Kuminga has been averaging 11.8 points on .431/.320/.741 shooting splits, 6.2 rebounds, and 2.6 assists a night. He’s a limited defender, but athletic with a solid downhill forcefulness. Obviously, rivals may be dubious about bringing on someone who has clashed with a team that so desperately needs a player exactly like what he projects to be - but all the Warriors need is one sucker.
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