Jonathan Kuminga doesn't play in regular season finale vs. Clippers
Jonathan Kuminga doesn't play in regular season finale vs. Clippers
In one of the most pivotal games of the season, with a top-six seed on the line, a key member of the Golden State Warriors was missing against the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday. Despite being healthy and available, fourth-year wing Jonathan Kuminga didn't receive a minute of playing time against the Clippers in Golden State's 124-119 overtime loss in the regular-season finale on Sunday.
Following Sunday's loss, Kerr was asked about Kuminga's DNP - coach's decision. Kerr said that the Warriors have found a group they're "comfortable" with since the arrival of Jimmy Butler. Kerr revealed that he didn't tell Kuminga he wouldn't play, just that he wouldn't be using his normal rotation in the first quarter.
We've just found a group since Jimmy got here that we're pretty comfortable with. Gui didn't play either. You know, Gui's been our highest plus-minus guy over the last two months. Both he and JK have been really impactful players for us. It doesn't mean they're out of the loop going forward; it's just this is just how this game played out.
Kuminga played 16 or more minutes off the bench in his last six games. Kuminga missed a long stretch of games after suffering an ankle injury in early January. The G League Ignite product returned to the lineup in mid-March.
Since returning from injury, Kuminga has played 15 games and is averaging 12.2 points on 44.1% shooting from the field with 3.9 rebounds and 2.3 assists in 20.8 minutes per game.
Prior to his injury and the acquisition of Jimmy Butler, Kuminga was a key cog in Golden State's offense, averaging a career-best 16.8 points per game over 32 contests with 10 starts. In late December, Kuminga recorded a career-high 34 points in back-to-back games. One of Kuminga's 34-point outbursts came against Sunday's opponent, the Clippers.
After the game came to an end on Sunday and fans filed out of Chase Center, Kuminga stayed on the court and got shots on the court.
With a loss on Sunday, the Warriors will now prepare to host the Memphis Grizzlies in the opening game of the play-in tournament on Tuesday at Chase Center.
This post originally appeared on Warriors Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
28 minutes ago
- USA Today
Golden State Warriors jersey history - No. 16 - Roy Pugh (1948)
The Golden State Warriors have had over 600 players don the more than 60 jersey numbers used by their players over the more than 75 years of existence the team has enjoyed in its rich and storied history. Founded in 1946 during the Basketball Association of America (BAA -- a precursor league of the NBA) era, the team has called home the cities of Philadelphia, San Francisco, Oakland, and even San Diego. To commemorate the players who wore those numbers, Warriors Wire is covering the entire history of jersey numbers and the players who sported them since the founding of the team. For this article, we begin with the first of nine players who wore the No. 16 jersey for the Warriors. That player would be Golden State big man alum Roy Pugh. After ending his college career at SMU, Pugh was picked up with the 20th overall selection of the 1948 BAA draft by (then) Philadelphia (now, Golden State) Warriors. The Jacksonville, Texas native would play just 13 games with the Dubs before his contract was sold to the (then) Fort Wayne (now, Detroit) Pistons. During his time suiting up for the Warriors, Pugh wore only jersey No. 16 and put up 1.5 points per game. All stats and data courtesy of Basketball Reference.
USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
Golden State Warriors jersey history - No. 15 - Mychal Mulder (2020-21)
The Golden State Warriors have had over 600 players don the more than 60 jersey numbers used by their players over the more than 75 years of existence the team has enjoyed in its rich and storied history. Founded in 1946 during the Basketball Association of America (BAA -- a precursor league of the NBA) era, the team has called home the cities of Philadelphia, San Francisco, Oakland, and even San Diego. To commemorate the players who wore those numbers, Warriors Wire is covering the entire history of jersey numbers and the players who sported them since the founding of the team. For this article, we begin with the 26th of 27 players who wore the No. 15 jersey for the Warriors. That player would be Golden State guard alum Mychal Mulder. After ending his college career at Kentucky, Mulder would go unselected in the 2017 NBA draft, playing in the G League until he signed with the Dubs in 2020. His stay with the team would span parts of two seasons, coming to an end when he was waived by Golden State in 1981. During his time suiting up for the Warriors, Mulder wore only jersey No. 15 and put up 6.2 points and 1.2 rebounds per game. All stats and data courtesy of Basketball Reference.
USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
Draymond Green sees Fred VanVleet, Kevin Durant as good cultural match in Houston
Draymond Green on the pairing of Kevin Durant and Fred VanVleet with the Rockets: 'Certain things that KD doesn't like to do, Fred will do that. In team sports, that's how it's supposed to work.' Warriors veteran Draymond Green has plenty of experience playing alongside Kevin Durant in Golden State, and he's also faced off against Houston Rockets guard Fred VanVleet in multiple high-leverage, competitive series in the NBA playoffs. With that knowledge, Green envisions the veteran pairing of Durant and VanVleet working well in Houston. From his latest podcast (The Draymond Green Show with Baron Davis): Shoutout to Freddy V, he got a new two-year deal to stay with the Rockets. Well deserved, the way I saw him lead that team in the playoffs. They're going to need his leadership. I think with Fred's demeanor and how Fred goes about things, and with KD and how KD goes about things… I think it'll be a good match. Some of the stuff that (Kevin) doesn't want to do, people try to make it an indictment on his character. No. We're all human beings, and we all have strengths and we all have weaknesses. Certain things that KD doesn't like to do, Fred will do that. On a basketball team in team sports, that's how it's supposed to work. So, I think this puts them in a really good position. They're obviously going to be a team to be reckoned with. That team is in a really good position, and I definitely think it (the Durant trade) is an upgrade. Green and the Warriors got the best of the Rockets in the first round of the recently completed 2025 playoffs. But the series went a full seven games, even with (now departed) Jalen Green struggling, and VanVleet was likely Houston's best player. Now, with Durant playing alongside VanVleet in that top-scorer role, the Rockets would seem to be more formidable for any potential rematch. As for the leadership and cultural angles, Green's comments largely mesh with the sentiments of ESPN's Tim MacMahon. On Thursday's First Take, MacMahon said the Rockets simply need Durant to focus on what he does best. That's being an elite scorer and producing at an All-Star level, which he continued to do last season at 36 years old. 'This is not a team that has a leadership void,' MacMahon said in a discussion regarding whether Durant needs to be more of a vocal leader with the Rockets. 'This is a team that has a phenomenal culture. They're tough, they're nasty. They need freaking buckets, and Kevin Durant can supply those in bunches.' In short, the Rockets were 52-30 and No. 2 in the Western Conference in large part because of their leadership and culture. What they needed was simply more shot making to revive a halfcourt offense that largely struggled throughout the 2024-25 season. That's what VanVleet and head coach Ime Udoka want Durant's help with during the 2025-26 campaign, which begins in October. More: ESPN's Tim MacMahon: Buckets, not leadership, is what Houston needs most from Kevin Durant
