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It may have been Klay Thompson’s clutch triples that ultimately put the Thunder to bed on Monday night, but the Golden State Warriors may not have gotten the win without the efforts of rookie big man Jonathan Kuminga.
The 19-year-old played a key role in getting the team going after a slow start. In 23 minutes off the bench for Steve Kerr, he scored 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting and added four rebounds and four assists. By night’s end, the Warriors had outscored Oklahoma City by 12 points when he was on the floor.
This kind of performance is hardly a new thing for Kuminga. He has been on a tear ever since All-Star big man Draymond Green went out with a back injury last month. Without question, the outburst has been a driving force behind Golden State’s current nine-game win streak.
Despite that, though, he was noticeably absent when the NBA announced the participants for its Rising Stars event at All-Star Weekend. And Klay Thompson has a major problem with the omission.
Klay Sounds off on Kuminga
Entering the campaign, not much was expected of Kuminga where contributing in a meaningful way was concerned. Sure, his future looked bright, but the rookie would inevitably need some seasoning before he could really be counted on by Kerr and Co.
That was the conventional wisdom, anyway, and it has turned out not to be true at all.
When asked after the game what has surprised him most about Kuminga, Thompson offered a glowing endorsement of the youngster. He also took the league to task for the Rising Stars snub.
“His floor game,” Thompson answered. “He’s so good around the rim. He’s really good in the post. His jump shot is very fluid. His IQ, to be 19 and make the impact he does; it’s a travesty he’s not in the rookie-sophomore game. That just doesn’t make any sense. I don’t know what the NBA was looking for in that one.”
A travesty, he says — and he’s not wrong, either.
Since Green last took the court on January 9 — a 14-game stretch — Kuminga has averaged 11.9 points and 4.5 rebounds in 19.7 minutes per game. Meanwhile, he has knocked down 51.7% of his shot attempts.
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The Bigger Picture
If Kuminga is wound up over his Rising Stars exclusion, he’s doing his best to not let it show. When asked about not making the cut after the Thunder game, he indicated that he was more concerned with growing his game and helping the Warriors win.
“They did what they did,” Kuminga said, via NBC Sports Bay Area. “I don’t really worry about that as long as I’m still playing here, getting better every single day. Most of the time when you go to the Rising Stars Game, it’s not really helping you work on your own craft. It’s just a fun game.
“I mean, I would love to be there, but they passed on me, so I don’t got to worry about that. I’m just focused on the future now and helping the team win and just getting better every day.”
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