The Golden State Warriors improved to 13-12 on the season with a 123-91 win over the Chicago Bulls at the United Center on Sunday. The biggest talking point after the game wasn’t the comfortable nature of the win, though, but the fact that head coach Steve Kerr had chosen not to play Jonathan Kuminga.
Kuminga’s playing time, or lack thereof, has been a big talking point for much of his career with the Warriors, and he was asked about this DNP postgame.
“[Kerr] told we’re going another way,” Kuminga said, via Anthony Slater. “We just switched certain things. That’s all.”
We perhaps should have seen this coming, considering what had happened recently. Kuminga had not played a single minute in the fourth quarter against the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday and Thursday, respectively.
Then, Kerr benched Kuminga down the stretch in the 99-94 win over the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday. Keep in mind, the Warriors were without forwards Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green against the Cavaliers, and the forward still wasn’t trusted to close the game.
It was clear that Kerr hadn’t liked what he had seen from Kuminga lately. As for whether what happened against the Bulls was a one-time thing, the 23-year-old didn’t have the answer to that question.
“I mean, I’m not really sure,” Kuminga stated. “But as long as things are working out there and we’re winning, I don’t see the point of switching anything, changing. Whenever my number get called, I’ll be ready.”
The Warriors have won two in a row, and Kuminga isn’t going to rock the ship when things are going well. He’s just putting his head down and waiting for an opportunity to come his way.
“Feel good,” Kuminga said when asked about his game. “I don’t have any problems. I’m going to work out every day, I’m gonna stay ready, because you never know how these things work sometimes. My number can get called anytime… I believe in my game, and I feel good about my game. So whenever my number get called, I’ll be (ready).”
There was hope at one point that things wouldn’t pan out in this manner. Kuminga impressed at the start of the season and appeared to have locked down a spot in the starting lineup. The good times didn’t last, though.
With the Warriors dropping to 6-6 following a 4-1 start, Kerr decided he needed to make a tweak. After starting the first 12 games of the season, Kuminga lost his spot in the lineup to rookie Will Richard. He then suffered a knee injury in his first outing off the bench against the San Antonio Spurs and ended up missing the next seven games.
Kuminga has averaged 7.8 points on 30.0% shooting from the field since he returned. He has been ineffective, and his role is likely to be reduced further when the Warriors are fully healthy. A breakup is looking inevitable once he becomes eligible for trade on Jan. 15, 2026.
There was a chance it might happen in the summer, as Kuminga and the Warriors were locked in a lengthy contract dispute. They eventually agreed on a two-year, $48.5 million deal with a team option for the second year.
Kuminga made it clear that none of that has been weighing on him. He claimed he has put it all behind him and is just focusing on the task at hand.
Jonathan Kuminga On His Relationship With Steve Kerr
Kuminga and Kerr haven’t been on the best of terms during their time together on the Warriors. One wondered if the former might throw some shade at his coach for this DNP, but he didn’t.
“We have a good relationship,” Kuminga said. “We get to talk and figure out things. We don’t have any problems. I don’t have any problem. Things just didn’t go my way today. I’m going to stay happy, stay locked in, stay focused into the next one.”
Kerr, meanwhile, stated there are a lot of mouths to feed when speaking about Kuminga not playing against the Bulls. It will be interesting to see what happens when the Warriors take on the Minnesota Timberwolves at Chase Center on Friday at 10 PM ET.
