Why The Warriors Need To Be Patient With Jonathan Kuminga

A sophomore slump for young players in the NBA is to be expected.

After an outstanding rookie season that was filled with jaw-dropping highlights, Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga has been struggling to start the 2022-23 season. The former No. 7 overall pick fell out of the Warriors rotation and has been unable to get consistent playing time. With the Warriors implementing the two timeline strategy of both win-now and develop-now, the team was hoping that Kuminga would make a leap in the second season and contribute to wins.

But, Warriors Head Coach Steve Kerr has historically not been able to trust young players in big moments.

“The hard part for Moses, JK and Wise is they’re young guys who need to learn by making mistakes to figure out what they can and can’t do,” Kerr said. “But, we’re not a team that can afford to let guys make mistakes. It’s unfair to them, but it’s the reality of what we’re facing. The way we’re playing, we’re not good enough to withstand a lot of mistakes.”

Kerr has oftentimes had short leashes with young players. In 2020-2021, the Warriors started No. 2 overall pick James Wiseman for a big part of the season; Kerr was impatient with his play and pulled out Wiseman in favor of veteran center Kevon Looney. But, with the Warriors unique roster construction and dependance on the young players, the Warriors coaching staff needs to be patient and allow players like Kuminga to make mistakes in order to grow.

This roster isn’t as deep as previous years, so the usual strategy of sending Kuminga, guard Moses Moody and Wiseman to the G-League to get more reps in isn’t sustainable. Kuminga is a unique talent — there’s a reason why the Warriors selected him as the No. 7 pick. Draft experts compared him to Boston Celtics forward Jaylen Brown, and as a wing player, the comparisons are legit. Kuminga’s ability to go down-hill is one of his most impressive traits. Oozing with athleticism, he has already put helpless defenders on posters as early as his rookie season. Kuminga has already shown flashes of greatness as a rookie, so imagine the possibilities once he taps into his potential.

Consistency with young players is always going to be a question, but how can a player be consistent if they’re not given the chance? The Warriors coaching staff need to trust in the young players and give them consistent minutes. Having DNPs or inconsistent stints will only mess with their confidence. Yes, the Warriors are in a win-now situation as well, but to think long term, the rewards will be endless.

This isn’t to say Kuminga doesn’t needs to be consistent on defense and stop settling on 3-pointers at times. It’s impossible, however, to ignore the potential that he has. And in terms of roster depth, the Warriors wing rotation is quite slim, leaving some openings for more playing time.

Forward JaMychal Green was brought in to stretch the floor with this outside shooting, but he’s been struggling to fit in with the Warriors offense lately. Patrick Baldwin Jr. is in the G-League getting his reps and Andre Iguodala is still working his way back to the court. This forces Kerr to give two-way forward Anthony Lamb heavy minutes, and while Lamb has found ways to contribute, those minutes should belong to Kuminga.

Yes, this two timeline strategy is difficult to manage, but it only works if the coaching staff trust the young players and let them loose. The potential is there, and it’s hard to imagine what type of impact these guys will have if the coaching staff doesn’t even play them.

(Photo credit: Thearon W. Henderson / Getty Images)