The Golden State Warriors are losing grip on the season quickly after a great start. With their 105-113 loss against the Phoenix Suns tonight, they are now on a four-game losing streak. Following the loss, coach Steve Kerr sat down for a conversation with the media and talked about shuffling the team’s lineup.
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Kerr brought Jonathan Kuminga off the bench against the Suns. The 22-year-old struggled initially on the floor but managed to end the game on a higher note. He registered 12 points with two rebounds and an assist in 19 minutes. But this isn’t going to help either the franchise or the player.
So to tackle this situation, Kerr is cooking up a few variations that he will try in the games to come. For Kuminga, he wants to give him more time on the floor with the veterans of the team like Stephen Curry and Draymond Green. The 59-year-old said that after struggling “most of the game” he’s seeing Kuminga’s late spark as a positive.
Kerr said, “He is one of the guys who we have to look at in terms of who he is playing with and can we get him more minutes with Steph and Draymond? He is better with those guys.” Kerr noted that most players perform better when they’re on the floor with the two veteran stars, but he’ll try to work something out to help Kuminga elevate his game.
Steve Kerr answers a few rotation questions from tonight
*They want to get Podziemski with starting group
*Looney to open second half for defensive coverage purposes
*On Jonathan Kuminga: “Can we get him more minutes with Steph and Draymond?” pic.twitter.com/PTIwV80CXp— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) December 1, 2024
He added, “We’ve got a lot of things to think about this week.”
Kuminga hasn’t got enough chances to play with Steph and Green this season. In 12 appearances alongside those two, he has averaged eight minutes on the floor. The output in that time, however, is good enough to consider giving them more time. The tandem of three are averaging 21.4 points while shooting 54% from the field and 44.4% from the three-point line during their time together.
The trio is also averaging 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 1.9 steals, and 0.9 blocks per game. They’re averaging third most points despite playing significantly fewer minutes together. This is something that Kerr must give serious thought to as it might help the team get back on track.
The last four losses have all been with a margin of four points or more. What’s more concerning here is that the Warriors have been outscored by the opposition in the fourth quarter in all four games. They only managed to score 13 against the Spurs’ 33, 28 against the Nets’ 41, 18 against the Thunder’s 21, and 27 against the Suns’ 28 respectively in the last quarters of the game.
Closing the games seems to be a core issue for the Dubs for now.
