It’s no secret that Jonathan Kuminga wanted a max contract from the Golden State Warriors. The team didn’t feel that Kuminga was worth it, gave him an opportunity to test himself, and then shortly benched him thereafter, only to bring him back into the starting lineup recently.
Former three-time NBA champion Danny Green believes that the Warriors did all of this in a process to devalue Kuminga. Green revealed this statement during an episode of FanDuel TV’s Run it Back show.
“I thought they were trying to keep him at a cheaper cost,” Green said. “Obviously, he was looking for an extension, bigger one than he expected they were gonna offer, looking for the max extension. When you see a guy like that go to the bench and not play as many minutes, you’re like, alright, they’re trying to devalue or trying to not let him be seen as much. He had a really good year last year, played well, showed what he can do, as you see in the highlights, his athleticism is unbelievable.”
It’s interesting take by Green and one that makes some sense. Kuminga was coming off of the bench this season by October 24, which is way too early to be giving up on him in that regard. Granted, the Warriors started winning games by that time so it made sense not to change things up. Regardless, it’s very bizarre to relegate a 22-year-old potential All-Star who’s capable of averaging 20 points a game onto the bench.
