Jonathan Kuminga would have felt like he was always up against it when trying to carve out a prominent role with the Golden State Warriors, but he's faced no such issues immedietly upon his arrival at the Atlanta Hawks.
After just one breath-taking game off the bench on Tuesday, Kuminga has been ushered into the starting lineup in a strong sign of things to come after being traded by the Warriors earlier in the month.
Hawks have already delivered Jonathan Kuminga a starting role
Granted, Atlanta were without star forward Jalen Johnson and starting guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker for their matchup against the Washington Wizards on Thursday, but there's still an open pathway for Kuminga to remain a starter when that key pair returns.
The young forward has already made a loud statement in his first two games with the Hawks, exploding for 27 points, seven rebounds, four assists and two steals on 9-of-12 shooting in his debut.
Thursday's outing wasn't so emphatic from a scoring perspective, but Kuminga still produced an efficient performance that saw him finish with 17 points, nine rebounds and three assists on 5-of-9 shooting.
With his first two outings coming against the lowly Wizards, there's still plenty to prove for Kuminga and a long way to go before the Warriors truly regret moving on from their former seventh overall pick.
However, the signs couldn't be more promising for Kuminga early on, particularly given the recent demotion of former number one overall pick Zaccharie Risascher. Johnson's injury absence led to Risascher returning to the starting lineup alongside Kuminga on Thursday, but he played less than 25 minutes in a clear sign of the forward pecking order.
Once the Hawks get healthy, it's easy to envision their starting lineup featuring Dyson Daniels, Alexander-Walker, Kuminga, Johnson and Onyeka Okongwu. As much as there might be a lack of shooting in that group, it still feels like Kuminga will get a prominent and extended run as a starter -- the likes of which he never truly got with Golden State.
Kuminga started in just 97 of his 278 regular season games with the Warriors, almost half of which came during the 2023-24 season. Even when the 23-year-old impressed as a starter at the start of this season, it was a short-lived experience that lasted 12 games and eventually saw Kuminga removed from the rotation altogether.
The fifth-year forward won't have to wait long to play against Golden State for the first time, with Atlanta set to host his former team on March 21 at State Farm Arena.