The Warriors‘ season ended in a loss at Minnesota to the Timberwolves in Game 5 of their second-round playoff series. Their season ended in a 121-110 loss to the Timberwolves, despite a playoff-career high 28 points from Brandin Podziemski. Earlier, before Game 5, reports emerged that said Jonathan Kuminga pissed off Steve Kerr after failing to pass the ball to Stephen Curry on multiple occasions in the season.
After the game, Charles Barkley appeared on the ‘Inside the NBA’ show to express his opinions on the Warriors’ season-ending loss. He said, “They’ve got three old guys. Man, the Kuminga thing is interesting. ‘Cause the three old guys are making a lot of money, so you’re pretty much stuck with them for the next two years. And the Kuminga thing, we’re in the back like damn! He either plays or he doesn’t play, but now you got to make a decision, whether to pay him or not.”
“They didn’t extend him, and they also don’t play him when Steph is there”, added Kenny Smith, seemingly referring to the report.
Barkley further added, “I’m gonna disagree with you… He’s the only one on that bench that’s explosive. You can’t go to war with three old guys against the West. He was the only guy out there where you can say, ‘he can play with these Minnesota Timberwolves guys.’ But he is a restricted free agent, which means…I don’t want to make a comment because they know him better than we do. They didn’t extend him when all the other rookies (from his class) got extended, so it tells me they don’t believe in him.”
What Went Wrong For Jonathan Kuminga?
Ever since the Warriors traded for Jimmy Butler, Kuminga has significantly lost minutes with the team. However, in Game 5 against the Timberwolves, he was one of the few bright spots for the Warriors. He finished the game with 26 points in 32 minutes. As I previously predicted, he could be the difference-maker for the Warriors if they give him the minutes.
The Warriors owe Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, and Draymond Green a combined $139.6 million and $147 million over the next two seasons. Therefore, they have very limited room to pay Kuminga before taking a major hit in the luxury tax imposed on them due to crossing the salary cap threshold.
This puts Kuminga’s future at the Warriors in peril. He was arguably the second-best player on the floor today, despite Butler and Green both playing. He was eligible for a five-year, $220 million max-extension in the summer, but the Warriors did not extend a substantial offer. His future will be one of the biggest questions the Warriors will need to answer in the upcoming summer.
