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Golden State Warriors Steve Kerr was pleased with Jonathan Kuminga‘s marked improvement following their easy 125-108 preseason win over the LeBron James-less Los Angeles Lakers over the weekend.
“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.”
Kuminga completed his all-around performance with eight rebounds, four assists and two blocks.
The only kink was his five turnovers, which can be cleaned up with more reps.
Kuminga’s solid preseason performance bodes well for the third-year forward, who vowed to have a breakout season.
“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.
He’s undoubtedly backing up his big talk.
Kuminga will have a chance to showcase his growing game again in a rematch with the Lakers on Friday.
Jonathan Kuminga Credits Chris Paul
Kuminga credited Chris Paul, the Warriors’ key addition in the offseason, for his much-improved game.
“[Paul] is making my life easier every single day and just watching him the way he reacts to certain things and the way he’s playing,” Kuminga said after the game. “He’s somebody to pick his brain. They gonna get on me when I’m not doing the right things and I feel like so far, just playing with him kind of helping me out to read more of the certain things in the game.”
Paul had limited playing time in his preseason debut with the Warriors but still finished with six points, five assists and four rebounds in 13 minutes.
The 12-time All-Star point guard spent much of the summer mentoring Kuminga after his trade to the Warriors that cost them a top-20 protected 2030 first-round pick along with Jordan Poole, Ryan Rollins, a 2027 second-round pick and cash considerations.
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.
Thompson wants max. The Warriors want a discount.
Someone’s gotta give.
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