{"id":56947,"date":"2023-10-22T16:45:39","date_gmt":"2023-10-22T20:45:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/?p=56947"},"modified":"2023-10-22T16:45:39","modified_gmt":"2023-10-22T20:45:39","slug":"analyzing-jonathan-kumingas-explosive-preseason","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2023\/10\/22\/analyzing-jonathan-kumingas-explosive-preseason\/","title":{"rendered":"Analyzing Jonathan Kuminga&#8217;s Explosive Preseason"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">After a turbulent postseason in which he didn\u2019t see the floor much, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/k\/kuminjo01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Jonathan Kuminga<\/strong><\/a> has been making his presence known in the preseason. The 21-year-old has matured in the eyes of his coaches and is looking to take a third-year leap. <\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Analyzing Jonathan Kuminga\u2019s Explosive Preseason<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h2>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Jonathan Kuminga is having himself a preseason:<\/p>\n<p>\u25fe\ufe0fvs. LAL &#8211; 24 PTS, 8 REB, 4 AST<br \/>\u25fe\ufe0f at LAL &#8211; 26 PTS, 9-12 FG, 2 STL<br \/>\u25fe\ufe0f at SAC &#8211; 28 PTS, 6 REB<\/p>\n<p>Level up \ud83d\udcf6 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/8730rELYBM\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/8730rELYBM<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Golden State Warriors (@warriors) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/warriors\/status\/1713993712714564061?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">October 16, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<h3><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The Numbers<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">In the <a href=\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/2023\/09\/04\/2023-24-nba-power-rankings-offseason-edition-no-12-golden-state-warriors\/\" target=\"_self\">Golden State Warriors<\/a>\u2019 five preseason games, Kuminga has certainly found his rhythm. He averaged 21.8 points and 5.8 rebounds per game on an efficient 54.7% from the field and 45.8% from deep. Kuminga shot just 37% from three-point range last season and just under 53% from the field. <\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Kuminga was the top scorer in three of the five games, leading the Warriors to a 4-1 record. He was also vital in close wins against the Lakers and Kings.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">He\u2019s attempted 12.8 shots per game and 4.8 threes per contest, showing confidence in his ability to score the basketball. Sure, his three-point percentage may come back down to Earth, but his athleticism and improved ball handle should keep his field goal percentage up because he can get to the rim.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The Eye Test<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Watching Kuminga\u2019s preseason performance makes his numbers make even more sense. He\u2019s displayed a new ability to read a possession and understand the game&#8217;s flow. The vast majority of his 39 threes taken have been within the flow of the offense or because defenders dared him to shoot by giving him space. <\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Kerr describes how Jonathan Kuminga has grown on and off the court <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/UoW2jyF3gX\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">pic.twitter.com\/UoW2jyF3gX<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Warriors on NBCS (@NBCSWarriors) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NBCSWarriors\/status\/1714387077952114752?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">October 17, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">In last Sunday\u2019s game against Sacramento, Kuminga could discern early that his jump shot was not falling, so he decided to attack the rim. This change in mindset resulted in 17 free throws, of which he made 13, a continuation of his almost 76 percent from the stripe last season. <\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">To fit in with a lineup involving <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/g\/greendr01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Draymond Green<\/strong><\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/l\/looneke01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Kevon Looney<\/strong><\/a>, Kuminga must continue showing his ability to space the floor. He\u2019ll need to be the versatile kind of player <a href=\"https:\/\/www.basketball-reference.com\/players\/w\/wiggian01.html\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><strong>Andrew Wiggins<\/strong><\/a> has been, balancing floor-spacing with slashing to the basket for easy dunks, layups, and offensive rebounds.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Rebounding<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Kuminga\u2019s rebounding, particularly on the offensive end, has been a focal point for Steve Kerr this offseason. He was in the habit of hanging out at the arc, a no man\u2019s land between crashing and getting back.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Kerr has given Kuminga the focus of crashing the offensive glass on every shot. Wiggins is the only other Warrior with that power, as Looney makes his living there.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Is Jonathan Kuminga ready to take the Year 3 leap? <\/p>\n<p>Spoke with Kuminga and Steve Kerr to discuss this pivot point in Kuminga\u2019s early career and his importance to the Warriors <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/mPkZuA2Zm1\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">https:\/\/t.co\/mPkZuA2Zm1<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/anthonyVslater\/status\/1714653063884243057?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" target=\"_blank\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">October 18, 2023<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The whole staff has made a point for Kuminga to crash the glass, as reports from <\/span><i><span data-contrast=\"auto\">The Athletic\u2019s<\/span><\/i><span data-contrast=\"auto\"> Anthony Slater say they track his \u201ccrashes\u201d and \u201cstays\u201d in every game he plays, even scrimmages. <\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">Rebounding is the easiest way for a young guy like Kuminga to get his energy up. It&#8217;s an easy way to stay on the floor when other things aren&#8217;t going well.<\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">If Kuminga combines defense and rebounding with his flashy athleticism and skill set, he can be a spark for the Warriors. He could be the latest young piece headed elsewhere if he doesn\u2019t take the leap to help Golden State when it matters. <\/span><span data-ccp-props=\"{&quot;201341983&quot;:0,&quot;335559739&quot;:160,&quot;335559740&quot;:259}\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span data-contrast=\"auto\">As of now, the Warriors are excited about the prospect of what Kuminga can bring. Kerr and his staff want to see it when the regular season starts.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>After a turbulent postseason in which he didn\u2019t see the floor much, Jonathan Kuminga has been making his presence known in the preseason. The 21-year-old has matured in the eyes of his coaches and is looking to take a third-year leap. \u00a0 Analyzing Jonathan Kuminga\u2019s Explosive Preseason\u00a0 Jonathan Kuminga is having himself a preseason: \u25fe\ufe0fvs. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4610,"featured_media":57093,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1608,2,25,62],"tags":[4297,48967],"class_list":["post-56947","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-basketball","category-featured","category-warriors","category-nba","tag-jonathan-kuminga","tag-nba-preseason"],"modified_by":"Kayla Fonte","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56947","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4610"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=56947"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/56947\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/57093"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=56947"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=56947"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/basketball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=56947"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}