Steve Kerr and the Golden State Warriors decided years ago that Jonathan Kuminga wasn't a small forward, largely owing to his career 33% 3-point shooting and limitations as a ball-handler and playmaker.
That's not a lesson taken by the Los Angeles Lakers though who, despite having not yet secured Kuminga as a free agent this offseason, are making big plans to make the former Warrior their starting small-forward if they can acquire him.
Lakers ignoring Jonathan Kuminga lesson Warriors learned years ago
Kuminga remains unsigned nearly a month into free agency, and is reportedly willing to wait things out far longer until the right contract materializes, potentially from the Lakers in a sign-and-trade with the Atlanta Hawks.
The Lakers may not yet be offering Kuminga what he wants from a contract standpoint, or what the Hawks want in a sign-and-trade, but they are prepared to deliver his wish from a role standpoint according to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line on Monday.
"Sources say that the Lakers would still like to sign Kuminga and make him their starting small forward … provided that the 23-year-old is ultimately willing to accept a contract structure on the Lakers' terms," Fischer reported.
Starting Kuminga at the three would suggest the Lakers plan on starting Jake LaRavia or the recently-acquired Sandro Mamukelashvili at the four, with Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and Walker Kessler the three obvious starters.
For a team facing some pressure to get things right around Doncic, making Kuminga their starting small forward would be a bold move for the Lakers given his complete lack of history at that position.
Steve Kerr refused to play Jonathan Kuminga at small forward
Steve Kerr and the Warriors decided from early in Kuminga's career that he didn't have the requisite skills required to play at the three. According to Basketball Reference, Kuminga has played only 5% of his career minutes as a small forward, broken down across seasons as 14%, 2%, 2%, 7% and 1%.
Kerr's refusal to play Kuminga at the three offered up a problematic fit with veteran forward Draymond Green in the Golden State rotation. Even when the pair and Jimmy Butler all started together early last season, it was because the Warriors went without a traditional center.
Quin Synder and the Atlanta Hawks decided the same after Kuminga's move at the mid-season trade deadline, playing the former seventh overall pick exclusively at the four according to Basketball Reference.
Only time will tell if the Lakers can first land Kuminga, and secondly if they can have any success with the 23-year-old in a role that the Warriors and Hawks thought he wasn't suited for.
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