Steve Kerr has a role in mind for Jonathan Kuminga that one crucial Denver Nuggets starter has perfected, but the star doesn’t see himself that way.
The Jonathan Kuminga saga has gone on for what feels like an eternity. The Golden State Warriors forward has been negotiating with the team for months now.
The Warriors put their offseason on pause for Kuminga, hoping to sort out their situation before pursuing their players.
However, things haven’t gone their way at all. In fact, Kuminga rejected the Warriors’ latest offer, asking for a player option instead of a team option.
But if the Warriors want to bring him back, Steve Kerr is going to have to change the role that he wants Kuminga to fit.
Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty ImagesSteve Kerr wants Jonathan Kuminga to play like Aaron Gordon
Jonathan Kuminga’s agent, Aaron Turner, appeared on the Hoop Collective podcast to discuss his ongoing negotiations with the Golden State Warriors.
Turner admitted that Steve Kerr wants Jonathan Kuminga to play a role similar to Aaron Gordon on the Denver Nuggets, something that neither he nor Kuminga thinks is the right role for him.
“People have said he has no market. It’s not that he has no market. The market is closed… It’s the worst RFA market we’ve seen.
“That doesn’t mean that a deal is fair or not fair to him, just because the market is closed. I’ve said from the beginning to Mike and the Warriors… Him and JK have had an up and down relationship.
“JK has flourished under Steve at times… He’ll say he wants JK to be more like Aaron Gordon or Shawn Marrion.
“I don’t agree with Steve on that side, I don’t think JK is very much like those guys. They’re very much different player arcs. JK is just different. I’m not saying who is better.
“Aaron Gordon is playing off the ball, he’s not as much of a point-of-attack defender. They’re different. Steve made it clear, though, with Draymond, with Jimmy, the lack of shooting, it doesn’t really fit. If he’s going to come back to this, sell the best deal.”
Steve Kerr has played a big part in alienating Jonathan Kuminga
Steve Kerr has played about as big a part in frustrating Jonathan Kuminga within the Golden State Warriors as anyone else.
Kerr refused to play Kuminga as a starter after Jimmy Butler’s arrival. And that decision backfired when Kuminga proved Kerr wrong in the playoffs with his scintillating performances.
In the Warriors’ exit interview, Steve Kerr told Kuminga to get better at playing the kind of role he needed him in.
If Kuminga chooses to sign his player option, Steve Kerr is going to be one of the main figures to blame for the outcome.