Warriors’ Steve Kerr Hints at Rotation Tweak Amid Jonathan Kuminga Benching

Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr hinted at some tweaks to his rotation for Wednesday’s Game 2 against the No. 2 seed Houston Rockets.

But still, there is no sign of Jonathan Kuminga, who was a healthy scratch for the third straight game, as the Warriors look to build on the momentum of their 95-85 Game 1 victory on the road.

“There will be tweaks for sure, but we generally feel pretty good about our game plan, about how we’re playing,” Kerr told reporters following Tuesday’s practice. “But we do have some things to clean up for sure.”

Topping the list is balancing the minutes of Stephen Curry and Jimmy Butler, the Warriors’ 1-2 punch, to keep them fresh for the fourth quarter.

Asked about bringing Kuminga back into the rotation or playing Gui Santos more, Kerr only acknowledged Santos, who contributed five points and a rebound in five minutes off the bench.

“Gui came in and I thought where I made a mistake, honestly, we were rolling in that third quarter, and I kept Jimmy out there because we were rolling,” Kerr said. “And I thought I played him too much in the second half, I definitely need to look at that, the rotations, and make sure that we are getting guys the rest, and make sure we are bringing in fresh bodies like you are saying.”

Butler only had a brief 1:42 rest on top of the fourth quarter after playing the entire third quarter. But he is confident about Butler’s conditioning.

“I think Jimmy’s fine playing 40 to 42 minutes,” Kerr said. “Jimmy’s different, there’s a handful of guys in this league who can play 42 minutes and it not really affect them, I think Jimmy’s fine.”

Keeping Steph Curry Fresh

What Kerr is worried about is overextending Curry’s minutes. Curry played more than Butler in the second half, resting for only 1:29 during those 24 minutes.

“That’s what I’m talking about, like I think by shortcutting the rotation in the third quarter and then they (Rockets) started going on that run, it forced my hand to start Steph in the fourth [quarter],” Kerr explained. “And I think if I had handled the rotation a little better mid-third [quarter], I think we would have been able to give Steph a little more [rest].”

The Warriors built their biggest lead, 66-43, with 6:28 left in the third quarter. But the Rockets came charging back, cutting it to 69-60 at the end of the period.

Then the Rockets kept putting the pressure on the Warriors as they pulled within 72-68 on Steven Adams‘ layup at the 8:49 mark of the fourth quarter.

Moses Moody and Curry kept the Warriors afloat before Butler put on the finishing touches with six points inside the final 1:43 that put the Rockets away.

Why Fix if It Ain’t Broke?

Curry played nearly 40 minutes, leading both teams in scoring with 31 points on 12-for-19 shooting. It was a huge turnaround for Curry, who was held to three points on 1-for-10 shooting the last time these two teams met before the playoffs.

Butler ended up playing 42 minutes, delivering 25 points on 10-for-19 shooting with seven rebounds, six assists against only one turnover and a game-high five steals. The Warriors were plus-14 with Butler on the court, the second-highest plus-minus among all players from both teams.

Only Brandin Podziemski had a better plus-minus with plus-17 as the second-year guard added 14 points, eight rebounds, five assists and two steals in 35 minutes.

Moody and Podziemski are firmly entrenched in the Warriors’ current starting unit that has propelled them into the playoffs with an 18-3 record, including their Game 1 win.

Kerr has relied on a five-man bench composed of defensive-minded Gary Payton II, streak-shooter Buddy Hield, scrappy Santos, veteran big man Kevon Looney, and the floor-spacing rookie Quinten Post.

It doesn’t look like that rotation will change soon, as Kerr would continue rolling with what’s working.

“When you talk about adjustments like massive adjustments, that usually comes after a loss or something alarming,” Kerr told reporters.

The Warriors comfortably won Game 1 without Kuminga. So there’s no reason why Kerr would fix if it ain’t broke.