Jonathan Kuminga could be useful to Golden State Warriors
By Tony Pesta
It’s not every day you see a rookie make an impact on an NBA Finals game. Yet, the Golden State Warriors would be foolish not to deploy Jonathan Kuminga at some point in their series against the Boston Celtics.
The leash would be short, no doubt. In a series that is deadlocked at 2-2, the cost of Kuminga underperforming might be one the Warriors can’t afford.
Granting the 19-year-old a brief, two-minute burst at some point in Game 5 is something worth considering, though.
Situation pending, Kuminga could enter the game and provide a jolt of momentum through his skills in transition and physicality on defense. If he isn’t an instant contributor, the Dubs can pull the cord early and get back on track.
The Golden State Warriors would be robbing themselves if they do not give Jonathan Kuminga a chance at playing in the NBA Finals.
Why exactly would Kuminga be such a perfect fit for this series?
Two reasons.
Firstly, he’s the type of unexpected, unsung hero who could enter Game 5 after hardly playing in the previous games to make a huge impact in short minutes. He’s the perfect size to match Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown and will have fresh legs to apply pressure on Boston’s leading scorers.
It’s hard for the Celtics to gameplan for someone like Kuminga, who might not play at all. By using the element of surprise, Kuminga is primed to stun the Celtics with a few minutes of quality play.
More importantly, the Warriors could flat-out use Kuminga at this point.
With Draymond Green having the worst playoff series of his career, averaging just 4.3 points on 23% shooting in the finals, it would be worth giving Kuminga a few minutes to change the dynamic of Golden State’s offense.
Kuminga is much more of a threat to score. He can roll to the hoop and attack with ferocity. He can also take opponents off the dribble on the way to the basket. We should not expect Kuminga to explode for 20 points but even a short burst of scoring, particularly in transition or on putbacks, would give the Warriors a ton of momentum.
On the flip side, it’s easy to see how a young, inexperienced player like Kuminga could become a fish out of water. He would be picked on and forced into making decisions. It would only take a few errors for Kuminga to find himself back on the bench.
Nonetheless, the energy that Kuminga can potentially bring is too high for Steve Kerr to ignore for the entire series. At some point, I think we can all expect to see Kuminga get an opportunity to prove his worth.