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After what can only be described as a disastrous five-game road trip from late October through the beginning of the current month, Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr promised rotational changes in his effort to right the ship. One of those changes ended up being Jonathan Kuminga’s hotly-anticipated return to the fray.
Kuminga had logged consecutive DNP-CDs before Kerr threw him a bone in a back-to-back situation to close out the trip. By notching 18 points and four boards during that bout with the Pels, though, the former No. 7 overall pick earned another look from his coach. Unfortunately, his latest bite at the apple has yet to amount to much.
In 14 minutes against the Kings on Sunday, Kuminga scored three points on 1-of-4 shooting with one assists and zero rebounds. And that effort came in the wake of a four-minute, zero-point night against the Cavs on Friday.
This almost shocking start to his sophomore campaign has some in Dub Nation wondering what Kuminga needs to do to shake off the funk (and earn more PT). For his part, though, a rival coach believes that fans, pundits — and even Kuminga himself — need to realize that this is all part of a greater process.
Did Kuminga’s Rookie-Year Success Plant Bad Seeds?
Although Kuminga got off to a slow start as a rookie last season, he carved out a nice role for himself when injuries to Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala eventually forced him into the lineup. Post-January 6, he averaged 12.3 points and 4.5 rebounds per game while shooting 52.2% overall and 35.0% from deep.
In conversation with Heavy Sports’ Dean Deveney, the Western Conference coach opined that Kuminga’s standout stretch run may have set him up for the hard times he’s currently having.
“What you hear about him is, he wants to be playing right now,” the coach said. “He does not want to wait. If anything, him playing the way he did last year maybe hurt things because he saw, ‘Hey, I can do this.’ You know, ‘Didn’t you see that dunk?’
“Once you start thinking that way, it is hard to go back to playing garbage time or going to the G League.”
Alas, with the Warriors needing to dig themselves out of their sub-.500 hole, garbage time and the G League may be all they can afford to give Kuminga at this particular point in time.
Impatient Fans Should Pump the Brakes on JK
The coach further advised that people need to consider the fact that Kuminga is still just 20 years old when they’re evaluating his play and overall progress. “Some of the negative stuff that has been said about him has been overblown,” he said. “He is not the first young guy to be frustrated by having to wait.”
That’s not to say, though, that Kerr and his staff shouldn’t be placing any expectations on the baller.
On the contrary, the manner in which he responds to this early adversity could go a long way in determining what kind of pro he’ll be over the long term.
“If you’re a coach, you are watching and seeing how he reacts to adversity. Is he sulking? Is he p****d off and working harder?” he added. “I do not care how you feel, I care about what you do.”
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