Just a month ago, Jonathan Kuminga's future with the Warriors seemed uncertain. On Jan. 5, his frustrations with his limited role boiled over. After being benched for the last 18 minutes and watching his team blow a lead to the Nuggets, he shared that he had lost faith in coach Steve Kerr.
That statement led to a meeting with Kerr, and a transformation of his season. He's on a tear, averaging 22.4 points since that Nuggets loss.
Suddenly, the Warriors' young trade chip has played well enough that the they are no longer interested in trading him unless a legit star becomes available, per The Athletic's Anthony Slater. What changed for him to put it all together?
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Jonathan Kuminga has focused on becoming unstoppable in the paint
Kuminga had a one-on-one with Kerr the day after his "losing faith" comment that "went really well," according to him. He seems to have gained much better focus on the court, concentrating on his play rather than his up-and-down minutes.
After a recent performance against the Hawks in which he went 11-for-11 from the field, Kerr noted that the Warriors "want him in the paint because you can’t stop him in there. He’s so powerful and athletic."
Jonathan Kuminga DIDN'T MISS in the Warriors win against the Hawks!
— NBA (@NBA) January 25, 2024
25 PTS
100% FG (11/11 FGM)
9 REB
2 BLK pic.twitter.com/JUV7k37sUT
Kuminga is the only player on the Warriors roster who could beat a defense down the floor and throw down an effortless reverse dunk. He is way too strong to stop when he gets going downhill, bullying into defenders and converting layups in the 95th percentile of players at his position, per Cleaning the Glass.
He also has a nice skill package from the midrange, showing great touch on his floaters and footwork on up-and-unders.
Kuminga has been attacking mismatches more, looking for his shot and capitalizing on the strength advantages that he can create. He credited Draymond Green for helping him with his confidence, noting that Green told him to "be who you are. Don't overthink."
The skills have always been there for Kuminga. Now he's figuring out the mental part of the game.
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Jonathan Kuminga's shooting is coming around
How good of a shooter is Kuminga? We still don't really know the answer. He doesn't shoot a ton of 3s, but he's currently going through a hot stretch.
Kuminga has been extremely streaky this season, hitting just 28.9 percent of his 3s before Jan. 1. Since the turn of the calendar year, he's at a much better 41.0 percent. It's no coincidence that his scoring has risen from 12.5 points to 20.9 per game in that period.
Kuminga is so dynamic in other areas that he doesn't necessarily need to be a great shooter. Having him knock down 40 percent is a nice bonus, though.
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Jonathan Kuminga is becoming a defensive force
Kuminga has always had elite defensive tools. He has good size at 6-7 with a 6-11 wingspan, along with fantastic athleticism. He has used those to be pretty good on the ball, guarding a variety of positions, but his shaky feel off the ball has limited his minutes.
There have been much fewer mistakes in the last month. It's helped considerably that Green has returned to the lineup to quarterback the defense. Kuminga looked unplayable next to Andrew Wiggins at the start of the year, but those two along with Green have been the Warriors' best unit.
The most important thing for Kuminga's growth has been more minutes. He's gone from 21.8 up to 31.2 since Jan. 1. He's earned the trust of Kerr with his stellar play.
