Jonathan Kuminga took advantage of a starting opportunity on opening night in Los Angeles, but it's also set up an impossible decision for the Golden State Warriors ahead of Thursday's home opener against the Denver Nuggets.
The Warriors started small with a Jimmy Butler, Kuminga and Draymond Green frontcourt against the Lakers on Tuesday, yet the presence of 3x MVP Nikola Jokic is likely to make that much less viable as the hosts chase back-to-back wins to start the season.
Warriors have an impossible starting lineup decision against the Nuggets
Kuminga played nearly 34 minutes in the season opener, recording 17 points, nine rebounds and six assists in a mature performance that drew plenty of plaudits from Steve Kerr and the veteran trio of Butler, Green and Stephen Curry.
Kuminga's rebounding and passing was incredibly impressive, while his 13 points on a perfect 5-of-5 shooting in the third-quarter sparked a 35-25 period that proved the difference in the 119-109 victory.
It's impossible to think that Kuminga could be removed from the starting lineup after such a performance, but it might be just what Kerr needs to do in order to combat Jokic who will clearly provide the biggest obstacle to Golden State's chances of victory.
Rather than ask Green to give up significant size trying to guard arguably the best player in the world, the Warriors will probably be better served starting Al Horford after the 39-year-old came off the bench in his franchise debut on Tuesday.
Despite giving up size himself, Horford has proven a reasonable matchup for Jokic in past history, including during a game in March where he was a key figure in the Boston Celtics claiming victory over the Nuggets.
"Sunday, he did it on both ends of the court, falling one shy of his season high in points while tussling with Jokić for the majority of Boston’s defensive possessions. Horford, easily the Celtics’ best matchup for Jokić, never ran out of gas despite reaching the 35-minute mark for just the third time this season," Jay King of The Athletic wrote.
With Horford set to rest on the second night of a back-to-back against the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday, perhaps the Warriors will be willing to extend his minutes out to 25-28 purely for the Jokic matchup.
If Kerr does decide he needs Horford in the starting lineup, Kuminga would be the obvious omission given his starting role only came about due to Moses Moody's injury. The other option is to go really big and put Brandin Podziemski back to the bench, but that would still seem the unlikely scenario despite the third-year guard proving quieter than Kuminga on opening night.
Does Kerr pull Kuminga from the starting lineup after such an impressive performane? It feels like an impossible decision that's bound to have significant ramifications either way.