Getty Jonathan Kuminga #00 of the Golden State Warriors poses for a picture during the Warriors' media day.
Golden State Warriors young forward Jonathan Kuminga has only grabbed eight or more rebounds only 10 times out of his first 163 NBA games.
On Saturday, October 7, Kuminga had eight rebounds along with 24 points and four assists in the Warriors’ 125-108 preseason victory over the Los Angeles Lakers in what promises to be the start of a more concerted effort to crash the boards.
“That’s something I’ve been really working on,” Kuminga revealed after the game. “If I don’t do it in practice, they’re gonna stop practice. So it’s been a consistent thing every single day. I’m not great at it yet, but I’m working on it.”
Kuminga’s eight rebounds all came on the defensive end — a concerted effort that has become a habit since the Warriors employed the “stop-practice-if-you-don’t-rebound” rule.
The 21-year-old Kuminga credited Warriors assistant coach Kenny Atkinson for making him accountable for crashing the boards.
“Kenny actually [was] being on me every single time, not just Kenny just pretty much the whole team,” Kuminga said. “They want me to rebound more and I want to do that for sure.”
“It’s not something they are forcing me to do, but it’s something I really want to do more and I spoke to certain coaches like if you don’t see me crash or do this after the game, or just report, give me a number and I think every single day we’re working towards that and I’m getting better at it,” he added.
Kuminga will play a bigger role in his third season following Jordan Poole’s trade and Draymond Green’s ankle injury.
Saturday’s performance was certainly promising.
Steve Kerr Lauds Jonathan Kuminga
Kuminga’s solid performance drew praise from Warriors coach Steve Kerr.
“I just liked his aggressiveness,” Kerr said of Kuminga, who led the Warriors with 24 points off the bench. “He shot the ball with a lot of confidence. He had eight rebounds so. He was much more active on the glass than his first couple of years playing. We want that to continue. He showed his athleticism and did a good job.”
Drafted seventh overall pick in 2021, Kuminga has the length — a 6-7 frame and a nearly 7-foot wing span — and the athleticism to become the torchbearer of the next Warriors great team after Stephen Curry’s era ends.
He’s embracing the pressure, daring him to make a bold statement last summer.
“This upcoming season is definitely the year,” the 20-year-old Kuminga told ESPN at the Basketball without Borders camp in South Africa in August.
“A lot of people are expecting so much from me – and myself; I’m expecting a lot. It’s a lot of pressure, but I don’t really pay attention to the noise. The pressure is always going to be there. It’s just [on] me to go out there and perform,” he added.
Klay Thompson on Extension Talks
Klay Thompson shared an emotional perspective on the ongoing contract extension talks, which expectedly is taking time to be sealed.
“I think it’s possible [that a contract extension will be signed next month],” Thompson told reporters during Monday’s Media Day before turning emotional, “and if not, life is still great like I’m playing basketball in my 13th year in the NBA. So, I have no complaints about whatever the future has in store. Like I’ve done so many great things in this uniform, and I know there are many more memories to create.”
Thompson and the Warriors are on the same page that they want to continue their partnership. The only holdup is the financial terms.