Steve Kerr Breaks Silence on Controversial Jonathan Kuminga Decision
The Golden State Warriors picked up their third win of the NBA season on Wednesday night when they defeated the New Orleans Pelicans. This was Golden State’s most impressive win of the season, as it came without Steph Curry, Andrew Wiggins, and De’Anthony Melton.
The injury absences of Curry and Wiggins required head coach Steve Kerr to find two new starters, but he changed his lineup even more than many expected, removing Jonathan Kuminga from the first five. Starting Brandin Podziemski, Buddy Hield, Moses Moody, Draymond Green, and Trayce Jackson-Davis, Kerr moved Kuminga to the bench.
This move was surprising to many, because while Kuminga had struggled to begin the season, he is theoretically Golden State’s best scoring option in a game where both Curry and Wiggins are out.
Speaking with reporters after the game, Kerr revealed his reason for benching Kuminga.
“Without Steph and [Wiggins], I didn’t wanna start Trayce, Draymond, and [Kuminga],” Kerr said. “I wanted a little more spacing. I knew it would be a JK game. I knew he would play a lot. He’s played well against this team. The matchups are good for him. I told him before the game, ‘You’re going to play a lot. This is just about combinations and getting more spacing.’”
It will be interesting to see if Kerr sticks with Kuminga off the bench as long as Curry is out. As the Warriors head coach stated, spacing is a real issue with Jackson-Davis, Green, and Kuminga without Curry to alleviate the lack of shooting.
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