It’s been an interesting few weeks for the Golden State Warriors' Jonathan Kuminga, as he went from someone who was consistently on the bench to earning valuable minutes in Steve Kerr's starting lineup. This was mainly due to Jimmy Butler’s season-ending ACL tear in a game against the Miami Heat in mid-January.
While all seemed to be right as Kuminga started to become a constant presence in the Warriors' system, it would come to a halt as the 23-year-old suffered from a bone bruise, which is set to keep him out of action for an undetermined period of time.
Just as Butler's injury was the pathway to more minutes for Kuminga, which could've been used to raise his trade value following a demanded move away from the Chase Center, it may be the very thing that keeps him there instead.
As reported by ESPN's Anthony Slater, Golden State's front office is not as motivated to offload Kuminga this season following Butler's season-ending injury.
"Multiple team sources have described it as less likely Kuminga is moved following Jimmy Butler’s right ACL tear…" writes Slater. "Without Butler, he’s back in the mix, scoring 30 points in 30 bench minutes before the injury."
It's worth noting that the 23-year-old's role on the team isn't set to diminish upon his return from the bone bruise, whenever that is to occur, according to Slater.
"There’s internal conversation that he’d get another crack at minutes post-deadline — if he’s still around," reports Slater. "That has yet to be determined, though."
All of this would certainly be a blow to Kuminga's desire to be moved after what has been a rocky season, having spent plenty of time on the bench for various reasons. In the 20 games that Kuminga has taken to the court, he's averaged 12.1 points and 5.8 rebounds per game.
This belief also comes with not much time left for any potential move to occur, given the NBA's trade deadline closes on Feb. 5 at 3:00 p.m. EST.
For all the latestNBAnews and rumors, head over toNewsweek Sports.
Newsweek