In the midst of the most trying time of his NBA career, Jonathan Kuminga is making it abundantly clear that his scoring exploits can translate to the postseason. Unfortunately, the Golden State Warriors don't appear to be listening, perhaps indicating a future that's already been decided.
Kuminga has his flaws, but with Golden State's back against the wall, he stepped up to fill a massive void and confirm just how far gone this union is.
Kuminga has struggled to find the court during the 2025 NBA Playoffs, failing to play a single minute in four different games. When Stephen Curry went down with a left hamstring strain, however, the door was opened for someone to step up in the Warriors' leading scorer's place.
Kuminga has answered the call, delivering. a string of performances that most would've been praised for providing under pressure.
Kuminga made the most of his 23 minutes in Game 2, scoring 18 points on 8-of-11 shooting and adding another five rebounds for good measure. He went off for 30 points in 36 minutes in Game 3, and kept the momentum going with 23 points in 30 minutes in Game 4.
Despite leading the Warriors in scoring over the past three games, however, little seems to have changed in terms of how Kuminga is viewed as a future cornerstone.
Jonathan Kuminga leads the Warriors in scoring over past three games
Kuminga will become a restricted free agent this coming summer. As such, he will have the opportunity to sign an offer sheet with a different team, but Golden State will reserve the right to match and overrule any contract he otherwise receives.
One simply can't help but wonder if or why the Warriors would actually bring Kuminga back when one evaluates the trajectory of his career.
Kuminga, who's still just 22 years of age, is a dynamic scoring threat who has averaged 20.5 points per 36 minutes through four NBA seasons. Unfortunately, his minutes declined from 26.3 per game in 2023-24 to 24.3 in 2024-25.
That included a number of benchings by Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, which Logan Murdock of The Ringer was a product of Kuminga prioritizing his shot over Curry's.
Regardless of what the reason was, the bottom line is that Kuminga's Warriors career has been the epitome of stop and go. He's been a force of nature as a scorer at times, but even when he seems to have momentum on his side, stability is far from a guarantee.
The reasons may include his defensive inconsistency, shot selection, and inefficiency as a shooter, but for a Warriors team that lacks offensive firepower, Kuminga's erratic development has been mutually detrimental.
As Kuminga shows out in the playoffs against one of the best defensive teams in the NBA, his success has thus been bittersweet to witness. Perhaps it's a statement that Kerr can't ignore, but it feels like more an audition for a new suitor than a larger role with the Warriors.
Only time will tell what the future holds for Kuminga, but one can't help but wonder how many explosive scoring performances he can provide without an increased role.
