A divorce between Jonathan Kuminga and the Warriors seems inevitable, but when that could be now has become the question.
Despite Golden State reportedly upping its contract offer to Kuminga to three years and $75.2 million with a team option for the third season, ESPN’s Tim MacMahon believes it’s not all about the money to the 22-year-old forward.
“You’re making this about the money. He’s miserable. he is absolutely miserable,” MacMahon said Tuesday on ESPN’s “The Hoop Collective” podcast. “It’s a bad situation. It’s a breakup that needs to happen sooner than later. It is a terrible situation for him. He was getting DNP-CDs in the playoffs.
“The coach doesn’t want him. The coach doesn’t believe in him. The coach has publicly said over and over that he does not fit with the core of this team.”
Kuminga registered DNPs in Golden State’s most important contests to conclude the 2024-25 regular season and into the postseason.
This came after an already up-and-down four-year career with the Warriors after being selected by the team No. 7 overall in the 2021 NBA Draft. Despite showing flashes of his potential at times, Kuminga never maintained a consistent role in coach Steve Kerr’s rotation.
But when the Warriors needed him most — in their second-round playoff series against the Minnesota Timberwolves with an injured Steph Curry sidelined — Kuminga stepped up and showed out for Golden State, although it wasn’t enough to advance to the Western Conference finals.
Kuminga seemingly used that impressive postseason performance to his advantage as he entered restricted free agency this offseason, seeking a larger role and a contract that gives him stability with an organization.
But with training camp two weeks away, the situation remains unresolved.
How much longer will Kuminga remain “miserable”? Hopefully, for the sake of all parties involved, not long.
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