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Kerr, Dunleavy give Warriors' perspective on Kuminga negotiations

Evan Webeck, The Mercury News on

Published in Basketball

SAN FRANCISCO — The contract is signed. The saga is far from over.

Jonathan Kuminga will walk into the Warriors’ facility sometime later this week a much richer man than the last time he set foot on the property. The soon-to-be 23-year-old put pen to paper on a two-year, $46.5 million deal earlier this week, putting an end to the biggest drama of the offseason — and opening the door to the next one.

How, exactly, will Kuminga fit in on a team headlined by Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green, and what, if any, lingering effects will there be from a summer of tense negotiations between the Warriors, led by general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr., and Kuminga’s camp, led by his agent, Aaron Turner? Is he destined to be traded? Does he even want to be here at all?

“At the heart of any good team culture is communication,” coach Steve Kerr said Wednesday, addressing reporters for the first time since Kuminga signed his new contract. “We have to have a really good sit-down.”

Kerr was in daily contact with Dunleavy throughout the summer (“He shared with me what was happening, and I told him there’s a reason why I hated being a GM”) and said he reached out to Kuminga “quite a bit,” too. The Warriors have called summer time for business. Now that it’s time for basketball, it’s time to have another discussion.

“He and I have always gotten along well,” Kerr said. “There have never been any issues on a personal front for us. It’s just about fit. And it’s about what we need. And it’s about how he sees himself and how we see him.”

Kerr said he plans to experiment with lineups early in the season that include Kuminga alongside Butler and Green, an opportunity the Warriors weren’t afforded last season as they attempted to lock down a playoff spot while integrating Butler into their system.

That said, he added, “We’re going to run our offense through Steph and Jimmy, for obvious reasons.”

Since the Warriors drafted Kuminga seventh overall in 2021, the two sides have had conflicting views of his role. His combination of size, athleticism and scoring ability makes him unique on the Warriors’ roster, but as far back as his rookie season, Kerr has used Shawn Marion and his defensive motor as the ideal comparison for Kuminga.

Just last postseason, Kuminga had fallen entirely out of the Warriors’ rotation in their first-round series against the Houston Rockets, but once Curry went down in the first game of Round 2, he turned into the focal point of their offense.

When the Warriors are at full strength this season, with a starting five of Curry, Butler, Green, Al Horford and Brandin Podziemski (or De’Anthony Melton, when he is cleared to return), Kuminga is likely destined to come off the bench. But with a veteran roster, there will be times in the regular season where he is asked to step up and fill a larger role.

 

“That’s really been kind of the thing that’s held him back — what we need versus what he wants to do,” Kerr said. “There’s no denying that’s been an issue. And there’s no denying that there is a place for him on this team. We don’t have a big, athletic wing player like he represents. … The more he can defend with activity, run the floor, the better chance he has to play.”

Turner, Kuminga’s agent, went on a media tour over the course of the summer to try to sway public opinion on the primary sticking point of the negotiations, the inclusion of a player option versus a team option in the final year. The Warriors wound up winning out, securing a team option for 2026-27 that gives them the ability to trade Kuminga as an expiring contract.

Dunleavy, however, said the Warriors have no intention to move Kuminga.

“We feel like we have a player that can be really good and I don’t feel like there’s a need to make a move,” Dunleavy said. “We’ll see as the season unfolds. This time last year, I would’ve said we need to get better. I don’t feel that way right now.”

While it has been reported that Turner’s tactics irritated the Warriors, and both Curry and Dunleavy took subtle shots the past couple days (Dunleavy on Wednesday referenced the barrage of workout videos posted to social media), the team has maintained the posture that the contentious summer was merely business and it won’t be an issue when it comes time to play basketball.

Dunleavy called the negotiations “fair (and) reasonable” and said there were “no issues on my end.” Kerr began his comments by saying, “First of all, I’m happy for Jonathan.” They echoed the message from media day, when Curry, Green and Butler played down the distraction of Kuminga’s situation hanging overhead.

As to the question of Kuminga’s commitment, Dunleavy said he “absolutely” believes he is bought in. “He signed a deal. … I have no reason to believe otherwise. … We just want him to be the best player he can be, and if he does that, he’ll have a great role.”

Kerr, citing the four years he has coached him, said Kuminga is “not that guy to come in and tear a team down” if things don’t go his way.

“I’m not worried about anything,” he said. “Jimmy is an alpha. Steph and Draymond are alphas. They run that locker room.”

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