Kuminga’s growth mindset shown in recent Warriors wins originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Before Jonathan Kuminga could make his way through a line of handshakes and daps from his Warriors teammates and coaches, he was stopped in his tracks by Draymond Green. A hug turned to foreheads meeting each other and a smile beaming from the elder statesmen.
Proud and proud. Both emotions were seen and felt Saturday night when Green and Kuminga completed their personal handshake following the Warriors’ 127-121 overtime victory over the Houston Rockets on the road.
Green fouled out with 8.1 seconds remaining after an obvious inbounds pass leading to a Warriors turnover where they lead by two points. His foul led to two Rockets free throws that tied the game. Overtime, however, belonged to Kuminga.
“They brought energy, they brought strength, they got us on our heels,” Green told reporters after the win when talking about the Rockets’ comeback attempt. “And then Jonathan Kuminga showed why he is Jonathan Kuminga.”
The Warriors led by 18 points after the first quarter at the Toyota Center. Their lead grew all the way to 31 points during the second quarter and was at 28 points by halftime. Kuminga was a major reason why.
Coming off the bench for the third straight game as Steph Curry is nursing a sprained left ankleKuminga in 11 minutes scored 14 effective points from the bench in the first half. He shot 4-of-7, sank two of his three 3-point attempts and, just as importantly, got to the free throw line three times where he went 4-of-6.
But in the second half, Kuminga, like the rest of the Warriors, struggled. In 10 and a half minutes, he only scored three points. Kuminga made neither of his two shot attempts. What he did do, though, was keep getting to the free throw line.
Kuminga went 3 of 4 from the charity stripe in the second half and was 7 of 10 there overall. The rest of his Warriors teammates were 25 of 40. His 23 points were on 7-of-12 shooting, plus his seven made free throws.
As Green rattled off names like Tari Eason, Jabari Smith and Amen Thompson to turn the tides for the Rockets, it became clear just how important Kuminga is to the Rockets. Warriors to endure victories like saturday night
“He is very important. No. 1, he can match the athleticism of all those guys,” Green said. “… When you face guys like that, you need JK, because not only can he get his own, what he can do, he showed that down the stretch where every time we needed a bucket, he gave him the ball and he went and got it, but from an athletic point of view, he is just as athletic – if not more so.
“To match that physicality and athleticism was huge.”
When backs were against the wall and it looked like all momentum had shifted to the Rockets, Warriors coach Steve Kerr started Kuminga in overtime for Buddy Hield, who scored a team-high 27 points. The plan was to get stops with a defensive-minded lineup. The result was the Warriors outscoring the Rockets 8-2 with Houston going 1 of 12 from the field.
Kuminga himself scored six of the Warriors’ eight points in overtime, and grabbed two of his six rebounds. He never settled down. The 22-year-old possessed of athleticism that cannot be replicated in our deepest prayers has taken over letting his natural abilities be his calling card.
A spinning fadeaway from eight feet out, a layup in transition and a left finish over Smith at the basket for the final two points of the night. Everything clicked for Kuminga. How he did it, and his responses after the win, should make the entire organization incredibly happy.
“Will no one stop me where I want to go,” said Kuminga. “It’s not going to happen every time, but the mindset of getting someone to do what I want them to do. I’m more comfortable getting to the edge than doing different things.
“Why decide when I can reach the edge? That’s the way of thinking.”
A growth mindset. That’s what Kerr and all the Warriors want out of Kuminga. He didn’t play the final eight seconds of regulation when the Warriors could have used someone to put their head down and get to the basket for two points, or a chance to make at least one free throw. Kerr, Curry and Green all encouraged Kuminga when he admitted to being down on the bench, letting him know how much he was about to be needed for them to win.
Saturday night marked the third straight game where Kuminga came off the bench, which coincided with his best three games of the 2024-25 NBA season. Kerr said he “couldn’t be more proud” of the professionalism Kuminga showed and the strength he used when his number was called. In the last three games, Kuminga has played the most minutes of the season while averaging 18.7 points on 51.4 percent shooting.
His six rebounds in Houston were a season high, as was Kuminga’s plus/minus of plus-18 after being plus-4 and plus-8 in the previous two victories of the Warriors where he comes off the bench.
“I don’t want him to love coming off the bench,” Green said. “He believes he is a superstar. I believe he can be a superstar. So as long as you believe, you shouldn’t be fine coming off the bench, but how you respond matters. You can respond with a frown or you can just go do what can help the team win and be great, and that’s what he does.
“Not only let’s talk about his play, but let’s talk about his maturity, because last year he wouldn’t have handled that well. Another year of growth and maturity, he took it easy and he had his three best games yet of the season. … To credit his maturity and how he handles this, as well as his game. I think maturity is just as, if not more, important.”
“Last year, he wouldn’t have handled that well.”
Draymond Green praises Jonathan Kuminga’s maturity and ability to make an impact off the bench pic.twitter.com/IyrRCy8NO6
– Warriors at NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) November 3, 2024
Stacking days and piling up wins will likely have a more mature Kuminga back in the starting lineup soon enough. It will certainly have him on the court when it matters most, and it will certainly have him counting dollar figures this coming offseason.
