The Golden State Warriors started soaring after adding Jimmy Butler at the trade deadline last year. However, there was uncertainty around the team all summer with the Jonathan Kuminga contract situation overriding the good vibes from the spring. Even after Kuminga signed a one-year deal with a club option for a second, it was viewed with suspicion.
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The notion was that the deal signed by Kuminga was a move designed to set up a trade at a later date. Those thoughts are out of the window now after the Dubs made an impressive 4-1 start, in which Kuminga has sealed a permanent starting spot with his play on both ends of the floor.
Kuminga was pushed to the fringes last year, only to be used as a last resort. Now he’s an integral part of the Warriors’ best five. He is also a huge reason why the Warriors seem to have leaped to become a real contender this season. His rise is evident in how Kuminga’s teammate, Draymond Green, has nothing but good things to say about him.
“What Jonathan Kuminga has been doing, I want to talk about it,” Green said on the most recent episode of The Draymond Green Show. “JK, the way he’s defending … You know, we told him at the beginning of the season, ‘If you wanna do it differently, become All-Defense.’ And he’s taken that challenge.”
Well, this is a sure sign that Kuminga is winning over the veteran leadership on the team. “That man guarded the s*** out of Ja Morant on Monday night, and then guarded the hell out of James Harden on Tuesday night. That is elite-level defending,” the 4x NBA champion added.
Green, the 2016-17 Defensive Player of the Year and nine-time All-Defensive team member, then listed out all the great things Kuminga has done. He included his offensive evolution as the cherry on top
“He’s picking up guys full-court, he’s pressing up and using his length as they get into the paint, doing a better job of learning to defend without fouling, although he’s pressuring. The reads that he’s making on the offensive end, the passes that he’s making, he’s so poised and under control,” Green continued.
“The rebounding, he’s been rebounding the hell out of the ball, saying over everyone to go and grab rebounds,” he added.
Green reiterated that Kuminga was playing some incredible basketball. That has also resulted in coach Steve Kerr coming out and clarifying any doubts anyone might have had about him being a permanent starter on the Warriors roster.
The vibes are back to being immaculate in Warriors Land. Kuminga’s ascension has paid immediate dividends, and it should help long-term, too, as he’s able to shoulder more of the load and take some pressure off Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler every night.
The Warriors were undone by injuries last year. But with Kuminga playing this way and a championship player like Al Horford in the fold, if they can stay healthy this time around, there’s reason to believe they can beat anybody.
