Steve Kerr reveals reason behind Jonathan Kuminga coming of the bench amid contract standoff
Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr revealed the reason for relegating Jonathan Kuminga to an off-the-bench role in their win on Tuesday night. The Warriors overcame a 20-point deficit and toppled the New Orleans Pelicans, 124-106. However, despite the victory, one of the storylines that emerged from the game was the Warriors' rising star coming off the bench.
During the post-game conference, Kerr explained he had to make the change for spacing purposes, given the absences of starters Stephen Curry and Andrew Wiggins.
"Without Steph (Curry) and Wiggs (Wiggins), I didn't wanna start Trayce (Jacks0n-Davis), draymond-green" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer" data-is-sponsored="false">Draymond (Green)and JK (Jonathan Kuminga)," Kerr said.
Kerr said he thought it would be better to utilize Kuminga off the bench and expected a strong game out of him.
"I wanted a little more spacing, and I knew it would be a JK game," Kerr said. "I knew he would play a lot because he has played well against this team, the matchups are good for him. I told him before the game, 'You're gonna play a lot.'"
"This is just about combinations and getting a little more spacing on the floor to start. All it is just shuffling the lineup to try to get the right five-man grouping on there. But without Steph and Wiggs, to me it didn't make sense to start the three banks without those guards."
Jonathan Kuminga and the Warriors failed to reach a contract extension this month, which makes the forward a restricted free agent at the end of the season. Despite this, Kuminga showed out, tallying 17 points, three rebounds and three assists to help his team pick up the win.
What is the Jonathan Kuminga-Warriors contract standoff situation?
Jonathan Kuminga entered the NBA after the Warriors drafted him as the seventh pick in the 2021 draft. He was one of the most promising talents coming into the league from that draft class, and the Warriors were a great fit to start his career given their need for a forward. As per Spotrac, Kuminga signed a four-year, $24.8 million rookie contract with the Dubs, which is set to expire after the 2024-25 season.
During his time in the league as a Warrior, Kuminga has averaged 11.8 points, 3.9 rebounds and 1.7 assists in 21.5 minutes per game. However, the youngster has never been hesitant to express his offensive capabilities and his desire to play a bigger role in his team.
However, with big names like Stephen Curry and Draymond Green on the squad, it had become hard for Kuminga to shine as an individual star. He also did not secure the five-year, $224 million max contract extension he had hoped for with the franchise, as according to ESPN, extension talks did not gain traction.
The Warriors could use Kuminga as part of a consolidation trade for a bigger star or retain him as a restricted free agent next offseason.