Following the Golden State Warriors‘ recent 126-102 blowout loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder, the team’s veteran core made some rather shocking statements about the group’s commitment to winning. While these comments raised concerns about a potential rift in the locker room, Warriors insider Monte Poole recently addressed the matter.
While speaking on 95.7FM’s “Steiny & Guru”, Poole identified Jonathan Kuminga and Brandin Podziemski as two of the players the veteran core were criticizing.
“Everyone wants to identify Jonathan Kuminga & Brandin Podziemski as the two guys (Draymond referenced),” Poole said. “I think there’s a case made for a couple of other guys, too, but there’s a couple of things going on here.”
“One, Kuminga gets his money, and he knows in the back of his mind the Warriors are going to try and trade him because they’ve done it before. When you connect the dots, how can you not end up at Kuminga’s doorstep?”
“Podziemski’s issue is that he hasn’t been as good as the Warriors would like him to be. As much as they like him, he hasn’t met that threshold.”
“The vets know they need support, good support, consistent support,” he concluded. “And they’re not getting it.”
Poole’s report addresses some major concerns about the team’s young core, especially in light of some of the comments made by Draymond Green and Jimmy Butler.
When speaking on the team’s performance after the loss against the Thunder, Green said, “I think everybody was committed to winning and doing that any way possible. Right now, it doesn’t feel that way.”
Meanwhile, Butler added, “We just have to decide to do whatever it takes to win. Everybody might have to sacrifice something. I can’t tell you what that sacrifice might be. It may be different for every individual, every single night. It’s got to get back to winning being the main thing, and the only thing.”
Although Stephen Curry largely stated that the focus should be on winning, in retrospect, it aligns with Poole’s statement.
Jonathan Kuminga was one of the most polarizing players for the Warriors this offseason. After a long-drawn-out contract negotiation, Kuminga eventually re-signed with the team. While he showcased his improvement early on, the forward struggled against the Thunder, posting 13 points, three rebounds, four assists, and five turnovers.
Although Kuminga was assigned a starter’s role earlier this season, he came off the bench against the Spurs on Wednesday night. Though he had a scoreless night in 12 minutes of action, the Warriors came away with an emphatic 125-120 win, potentially placing him at risk of losing his starting spot.
Meanwhile, Brandin Podziemski made some bold claims earlier in the season about becoming Curry’s replacement. But with averages of 11.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game on 44.3% shooting from the field, he is nowhere near that level of productivity.
At the current juncture, the Warriors seem to be relying heavily on the duo of Butler and Curry. Although a 46-point outburst by Curry helped Golden State emerge victorious last night, the team will need its young core to step up more often.
With title aspirations guiding the team forward, seeing reliable contributions across the roster will be a priority. Coming off some poor outings, the Warriors will hope to see improved performances from the pair of Kuminga and Podziemski as they face off against the Spurs again on Friday, Nov. 14.
