Amongst a sea of contracts ahead of the recently passed contract extension deadline, one name was conspicuous by its absence. Jonathan Kuminga of the Golden State Warriors will play this season on an expiring contract, with Shams Charania reporting that Kuminga is betting on himself to become a star player this season, similar to the rise of Kawhi Leonard and Pascal Siakam.
"Jonathan Kuminga, I'm told, won't be getting an extension done. He believes strongly in his play and believes he has a chance to be a star-level player. You look at Pascal Siakam, Kawhi Leonard, players who he could have the trajectory of. The Warriors do want to see how this plays out and they're keeping a key eye on the fit between him and Steve Kerr."
Kuminga averaged 16.1 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 2.2 assists last season, but he was in a featured role for the latter half of the season after disagreements with coach Steve Kerr over his role.
The Warriors are invested in extracting the star potential out of Kuminga and his performances on-court last season showed solid growth compared to his first few seasons in the NBA. If the No. 5 pick from the 2021 Draft wants a max extension from the Warriors, he needs to earn it on the court this season.
Given his role will be expanded this season, he has the opportunity to make a considerable statistical jump and prove to the Warriors he can be a future cornerstone for the franchise.
The Warriors Need To Make A Big Investment
The potential involvement of Jonathan Kuminga in trades for Paul George and Lauri Markkanen led to those deals falling apart, showing the Warriors clearly believe in Kuminga's talent. But it makes no sense to make Kuminga the second-best paid player on the franchise behind Stephen Curry based on what he's shown so far in his career.
Giving him a bigger contract than the likes of Draymond Green and Andrew Wiggins could lead to similar resentments that hurt Jordan Poole on the franchise after his extension in the 2022 offseason. Nonetheless, a source close to NBC Sports believes that the franchise will take care of Kuminga if they see him have a strong season.
“He took a leap last season. They want to see another one before they make that investment. He’s still under their control. If Kuminga has a strong season, I know they’ll take care of him.”
A year where Kuminga becomes a 20-point scorer as a strong two-way performer would make the case for him to get a max rookie contract extension unarguable. The 22-year-old has been an investment for the Warriors which has been slowly paying off, primarily due to the insistence of Warriors ownership in maximizing Kuminga.
Kuminga should be the second option on offense behind Curry this season. If he lives up to the pressure, it virtually guarantees that Kuminga will be next in line to take the keys of this franchise from the 36-year-old Curry.
It's in the best interests of the franchise and the player to have a breakout season which elevates him into the potential All-Star category.
