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The Golden State Warriors suffered a crushing 124-119 overtime loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday afternoon in their regular season finale, resulting in them finishing the campaign as the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference, meaning they will have to earn their way into the 2025 NBA Playoffs via the NBA's play-in tournament. During the game, fans noticed that Jonathan Kuminga did not take the court, and one insider believes he knows why.
Head coach Steve Kerr's decision to not turn to Kuminga off the bench like he usually has done throughout the year raised some eyebrows, especially with the postseason right around the corner. According to Warriors insider Tim Kawakami, he believes that Kerr doesn't want to disrupt the chemistry Golden State currently has with each other by trying to force Kuminga in the rotation.
“I'm a Kuminga guy,” Kawakami said on “Warriors Plus Minus.” “I like his game, I understand that he does throw knots into their offense sometimes, I think his talents are over and above all that, but I don't think there's a great momentum in the locker room for JK to play, it just does not feel that way, I'll put it that way.”
“They like the other stuff they do, as Kerr said, ‘We've got a unit that we like,' they've got a rotation they like. I think we all can see, maybe you need to be better in certain areas. He has not reached that conclusion, that it's not worth the risk of playing him to mess up their chemistry.”
Could Jonathan Kuminga's time with the Warriors be coming to an end?
Kuminga's future with the Warriors has come into question several times over the past couple of years, but as recently as February, the team seemed intent on signing him to a long-term contract extension. Now, though, things could be different, as Kerr is willingly leaving the talented forward out of his rotation, which isn't a particularly encouraging sign.
While Kuminga is only set for restricted free agency over the offseason, Golden State's front office could move on from him if he's become a detriment to their locker room. First, they will be focused on finding their way into the playoffs and going on a deep run. The Warriors will square off against the Memphis Grizzlies in their No. 7-No. 8 seed play-in game, with tip-off scheduled for 10 p.m. ET on Tuesday, April 15.
