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After a tumultuous relationship head coach Steve Kerr, the Golden State Warriors traded Jonathan Kuminga to the Atlanta Hawks at the deadline.
The Golden State Warriors made big news by finally trading away Jonathan Kuminga after years of drama together. Head coach Steve Kerr clearly held little trust in Kuminga and often benched him over the past few seasons. Golden State couldn’t find their ideal trade partner and eventually settled on acquiring Kristaps Porzingis from the Atlanta Hawks.
Warriors General Manager Mike Dunleavy made some critical comments towards Kuminga when asked about Porzingis being injury prone:
“We feel good about it. We looked into it pretty in depth. We believe in our medical staff. There’s no guarantees or certainty. With where he’s at right now, where he’s been, we feel good about it. On the other end of it, we’re sending out a player in a similar boat who struggled to stay on the floor.”
Dunleavy both praised Porzingis coming to the franchise and referenced Kuminga having similar issues of not being on the floor. Porzingis’ injuries have harmed him from delivering a strong season due to missed games. Kuminga’s time out usually came from Kerr benching him, but he did deal with injuries in recent weeks. Dunleavy made light of that by criticizing Kuminga while defending Porzingis.
Was Dunleavy Right To Criticize Kuminga
Many fans view this as crossing the line by Dunleavy since Kuminga couldn’t control how little he played for the Warriors. Most players of Kuminga’s talent level or better get multiple chances with the team who drafted them before the coach and front office loses confidence.
Kuminga witnessed Kerr having a quick trigger and not trusting him in important moments. Kerr’s coaching style sees the team play more important than a talented individual using his skills. However, this season sees Golden State needing more offense with various injuries to make it more confusing why they didn’t give Kuminga a fair chance.
The toxic situation finally reaching an end seemed like the resolution everyone hoped for. Dunleavy taking shots at Kuminga for availability issues for no reason doesn’t come off well for a GM that has struggled to improve the team. Warriors’ fans have already started blaming Dunleavy for wasting Stephen Curry’s final great seasons before this comment.
Losing Kuminga May Still Help Warriors
Golden State may still benefit from this trade since the team badly lacked a center. Veteran Al Horford and various young players have seen the play at that position struggling compared to the rest of the league.
Porzingis gives the Warriors a respected center that has contributed to winning basketball when healthy. The Boston Celtics won the 2024 Championship thanks in part to acquiring Porzingis as one of the final missing pieces. Golden State is unlikely to contend for a title this season, but they can still improve.
Porzingis needs to stay healthy and deliver his usual production to make it a positive trade since they only lost expendable pieces Buddy Hield and Kuminga. However, Dunleavy’s comment will create more comparing down the line and put more pressure on Porzingis. Golden State will look bad if Kuminga is more available and productive for Atlanta than Porzingis is for the Warriors.
Joey Haverford Joey Haverford is a seasoned sports content writer with over 12 years of experience. He has covered the NBA, WNBA, MLB, NFL, and professional wrestling in the sports industry. More about Joey Haverford
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