There’s a lot of trouble in San Francisco right now, as Golden State Warriors youngster Jonathan Kuminga has reportedly lost faith in Steve Kerr and no longer thinks he can help him reach his full potential.
After the Warriors lost to the Denver Nuggets on Christmas, a game in which Kuminga was benched for the final three minutes, the former first-round pick voiced some of his frustrations.
“Sometimes, I come out the game not knowing what I did,” Kuminga said. “And that messes with my head. It’s like, ‘What they want me to do?’ I can pass and I can do different s—.”
Kuminga is averaging 12.8 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 22.1 minutes per game this season. It’s the highest average of minutes he’s gotten over the course of his short career, but there are plenty of people out there who believe he deserves to be playing more.
In his team’s latest game, which it lost by three points to the Nuggets due to a Nikola Jokic buzzer-beater, Kuminga recorded 16 points, four rebounds and four assists. He was removed from the game with a little less than six minutes left in the third quarter and never returned.
The Warriors were up by 18 points with a little less than six minutes left in the fourth quarter, but Denver stormed all the way back with an incredible comeback capped off by Jokic’s shot.
NIKOLA JOKIC GAME WINNER 😱 pic.twitter.com/EsimPMypzg
— Ahn Fire Digital (@AhnFireDigital) January 5, 2024
After the game, Kerr explained why he didn’t put Kuminga back on the floor.
“He was playing great,” Kerr said regarding Kuminga. “His normal time to go back in would have been around the five-, six-minute mark (of the fourth). (Andrew Wiggins) was playing great, we were rolling, were up 18, 19, whatever it was. So we just stayed with him. Then at that (later) point, it didn’t feel like the right thing to do. He had been sitting for a while. So I stayed with the group that was out there, and obviously, we couldn’t close it out.”
It appears to be a logical explanation, but it clearly didn’t sit right with Kuminga.
“(Thursday night) was the straw that broke the camel’s back,” a source told The Athletic regarding Kerr leaving Kuminga on the bench.
It’ll be interesting to see how Kerr, Kuminga and the Warriors move forward. Golden State is scheduled to host the lowly Detroit Pistons on Friday night. Interestingly enough, Kuminga popped up on the team’s official injury report with left toe soreness. As of 2:30 p.m. PST, he’s listed as probable.
Perhaps the impending return of Draymond Green from suspension will help right the ship for Golden State, which sits in 11th place in the Western Conference with a 16-18 record.
However, Green has had his own issues this season, having been suspended twice already for different incidents. Golden State’s 2022 Finals win seems very long ago.
There’s plenty of time left in the season to move up the standings, but one has to wonder if the Warriors’ golden era has finally come to a close.
