ATLANTA -- In his third game as an Atlanta Hawk, Jonathan Kuminga stepped up to the free throw line in front of a excited home crowd. They had a simple message to relay to Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy.
"Thank you Warriors," the State Farm faithful chanted over and over.
Kuminga has given the Hawks plenty of reasons to be thankful. Granted that it's come against three non-playoff teams in the dog days of the season, but he's been excellent since being traded. He's averaging career-highs across the board, including an impressive 21.3 points and 7.7 rebounds in only 26.7 minutes per game.
Kuminga with Warriors Stat (per game) Kuminga with Hawks
22.1 Minutes 26.7
12.5 Points 21.3
4.2 Rebounds 7.7
1.8 Assists 3.3
54.6% Effective FG% 75.8%
Kuminga has looked like a new man in Atlanta, both in role and performance. In a since-deleted Instagram story after his 27-point debut, the former No. 7 pick expressed his belief in himself, writing "Warriors damn messed up π€."
Jonathan Kuminga deleted Instagram story:
βsh*t about to get scary πβ
βWarriors damn messed up π€ β
DEMON TIME. pic.twitter.com/BLdUlhTu00
β ππ₯ππ²π¨πππππ₯ππ§ (@PlayoffJohnson) February 25, 2026
It's important to note that it's early, and Kuminga has put together these types of promising scoring stretches in his career before. He's going to have to do this for more than a March stretch against bad teams in order to change the narrative around him as a one-dimensional scorer. But the 23-year-old forward is making it look like it might have been Golden State more than himself that was to blame for his problems earlier in his career.
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Jonathan Kuminga's fresh start with Hawks just what star needed
The Warriors moved on from Kuminga for a number of different reasons. He wasn't a good fit in their system, which revolves around making quick decisions and player and ball movement. His lack of floor spacing made it difficult to play him alongside Jimmy Butler. And while his scoring wasn't a problem, he couldn't find ways to contribute outside of that area.
The relationship between Kuminga and Kerr soured to the point where it could no longer be salvaged. Golden State found a quiet market when they were finally forced to trade him.
Hawks coach Quin Snyder has provided Kuminga with a much-needed fresh start. Snyder is a creative offensive coach that previously changed Atlanta's system to prioritize Jalen Johnson, who shares certain traits with Kuminga.
Johnson was also a talented scoring forward who didn't mesh well with his former coach and was struggling to make his mark in the NBA. Snyder opened up the floor for him, emphasized transition play, and developed him into an All-Star. He's doing similar things with Kuminga, utilizing his effectiveness in transition on a younger and faster team.
Snyder's job has been made easier by Kuminga's mentality shift, to the point where Snyder has unexpectedly had to tell the score-first forward that "it's okay to shoot." You can't blame him too much. He passed out of an open dunk opportunity in order to set up a corner 3 for teammate Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who rewarded that unselfishness by draining the shot.
Snyder has gone out of his way to praise that passing too. Kuminga is averaging a career-high 3.3 assists, and he's showing nice court vision thus far. There have still been some rough patches that suggest Kuminga is never going to totally overcome his reputation as a low feel player. He hit a Blazers defender in the back with a chest pass when he should have thrown a bounce pass on Sunday. But he instantly corrected himself, motioning to center Jock Landale that he'd throw the correct pass next time.
Ironically, Kuminga seems to be reinforcing one of Kerr's most popular mantras, that the ball has energy. With the increased opportunity, the other parts of his game have grown. He was a frustratingly poor rebounder in Golden State, averaging only 4.2 per game. That's up to an astounding 7.7 per game. He's shown a much better nose for tracking down loose balls. His defensive intensity has increased too. He's had some noteworthy stops as a one-on-one defender and been rotating as a helper much better than before.
Kuminga's scoring has never been an issue. He's always been good at putting his head down to get to the rim. He's in demon mode in Atlanta. His 7.3 free throws per game is more than double his 3.3 per game average in Golden State. He's only missed one of his 14 attempts at the rim thus far, good for an absurd 93 percent shooting from within four feet of the basket.
Kuminga's athleticism has been on full display, dunking it six times in his three games. He geared up for a windmill during a fast break in Sunday's blowout win over the Blazers. He followed that up with an even more impressive one, dunking left-handed over big man Yang Hansen.
KUMINGA CHILL DAWG π€― pic.twitter.com/wvXig6OuJs
β Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) March 2, 2026
That hammer left one of the all-time great dunkers in Dominique Wilkins flabbergasted at how the Hawks were able to get Kuminga in exchange for a player in Kristaps Porzingis that hasn't even played yet for the Warriors.
"Thank you Golden State Warriors. We appreciate it," Wilkins noted on the broadcast. "How you give up on a guy that young with that ability is beyond me."
Along with that improved all-around play, Kuminga is still scoring the ball at a prodigious rate. He's getting more opportunities in isolation, where he has thrived.
Late in Sunday's game, he got the matchup that he was looking for against guard Scoot Henderson. He called for the ball in the high post, catching it just inside the 3-point line. He eyed up Henderson for a second. Then another. And another. He jabbed his foot, then suddenly exploded towards the rim with his shoulder down, taking two dribbles to just inside the free throw line. He rose up for a fadeaway jumper, drilling the shot.
Jonathan Kuminga mid-post + jab series work vs. Scoot Henderson pic.twitter.com/WUef2lfDsl
β Jackson Lloyd (@JacksonLloyd952) March 2, 2026
It was a move that Kuminga had practiced thousands of times before. It's also the type of shot selection that had driven Kerr crazy in the past.
"This is how weβve played for 10 years, and itβs important for our young players to understand, we donβt need contested 17-footers with 12 on the shot clock. Right?" Kerr once said of Kuminga's play. "Thatβs a bad shot."
By the numbers, Kerr had a point. But letting those shots happen once in a while has led to Kuminga playing freer and leaning more into his other strengths. It's also led to a lot of early success.
"My teammates told me not to worry about anything," Kuminga said after his debut. "Just go out there and be you."