It was a difficult summer for Jonathan Kuminga and the Golden State Warriors. The two sides saw their negotiations hit a standoff during the offseason, and an agreement between the two sides didn’t materialize until Oct. 1. Kuminga then signed a two-year $46.8 million contract, with the second year being a team option.
Despite that standoff, it would appear that Kuminga is now fully focused on helping Golden State contend for a championship. During a recent episode of ESPN’s NBA Today, Marc J. Spears explained how Kuminga appears to be at peace and happy with the outcome of his negotiations.
“Happiness, joy, peace, which is surprising,” Spears said. “I’ve been around a while. I remember seeing Allen Iverson being unhappy in Memphis, if you remember that. Jimmy Butler. Stephen Jackson in Golden State. Kevin Durant not being happy. But I saw Kuminga dancing after the game, he told me he was at peace. I think the guys, Steph (Curry), Draymond (Green), Jimmy and Buddy Hield played a good role in giving him support, and I think that helped him a lot,.”
The hard part for Kuminga will be finding a consistent role within Steve Kerr’s rotation. His skill set should help add an interior scoring punch and switchable defender to the roster; however, the coaching staff must figure out the best rotations and combinations to put him in.
Golden State will come into the season with the hopes of contending for a championship. Kuminga can certainly be an important part of achieving that goal. Hopefully, the standoff from the summer is now water under the bridge and everyone can get back to pulling in the same direction.