CLEVELAND \u2014 In the lead up to a restricted free agency that will temporarily solve his uncertain NBA future, Jonathan Kuminga spent the last two weeks splitting time between two workout facilities on the east side of Cleveland. His days started around 7 a.m. His training wrapped around 5 p.m.<\/p>\n
The two separate sessions of court work were done in a gym with three murals of NBA legends plastered on its interior wall: LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Michael Jordan, painted and peering over Kuminga as he blasted through an on-ball playmaking circuit designed by Ant Wells II, his skill development trainer, under the belief that Kuminga possesses the talent to become a great.<\/p>\n
The imagery is fitting considering the context of the moment.<\/p>\n
Kuminga returned from a 31-game absence late in the regular season and struggled to settle into a low-usage, off-ball reserve role with Jimmy Butler suddenly in the mix for the Golden State Warriors. Steve Kerr pulled Kuminga from the rotation in the first round of the playoffs and has made regular reference about Kuminga\u2019s need to sharpen the supplementary, role-playing aspects of his game.<\/p>\n
But Stephen Curry\u2019s hamstring injury changed the landscape and exposed the offensive shortcomings around the star guard. The Warriors had a desperate need for higher level creation, scoring and general offensive talent in the second round. Kuminga busted through the door with 18, 30, 23 and 26 points on 55 percent shooting the last four games against an active group of Minnesota Timberwolves defenders who struggled to stay in front of him or keep him off the free-throw line (25 attempts).<\/p>\n
That sample on that stage only hardened Kuminga\u2019s belief in chasing his preferred personal career path. His first crack at free agency is about finding the contract he desires but also seeking what he\u00a0wants, not necessarily conforming into what this specific version of the Warriors needs. Kuminga has long held a dream of evolving into a star wing capable of driving an offense and leading a team. With his future in the balance this next month, he\u2019s training and preparing accordingly.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s what\u2019s been on my mind,\u201d Kuminga told\u00a0The Athletic. \u201cThings take time, but I feel like I\u2019m at the point where that has to be my priority, to just be one of the guys a team relies on. Aiming to be an All-Star. Multiple times. Aiming to be great. \u2026 Wherever I\u2019m going to be at, it don\u2019t matter if it\u2019s the Warriors or if it\u2019s anywhere else, it\u2019s something I want. I want to see what I could do. I know I got it. So I want to really see. I\u2019ve never got that chance.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kuminga\u2019s two-week regimen in Cleveland begins with morning activation work at Core Chiro, a high-end facility with all the strength trainers and modern tools to optimize a professional athlete. Then it\u2019s a 15-minute drive to the gym for the first of his two court workouts.<\/p>\n
This session includes a ton of dribble work and pick-and-roll reads. Those are two areas Kuminga is attempting to polish up this summer \u2014 tightening his handle and creating more for his teammates in high-screen action. He had six assists in the Timberwolves series. If he is to get an opportunity to be an offensive engine, he needs to locate and deliver to his teammates more often.<\/p>\n
Kuminga\u2019s shooting numbers in these workouts are being tracked. During a nine-day snapshot in mid-June, he took 3,145 3s and 3,251 shots inside the arc, making 56 percent of his 3s \u2014 some catch-and-shoot, some off-the-dribble \u2014 and 72 percent of his 2s. He\u2019s working on his paint pull-ups, short floaters and mid-post moves. Those around him say he\u2019s shooting it better than he ever has before. He says he feels like everything \u2014 skills, strength, mind, confidence \u2014 are starting to click.<\/p>\n
But the percentages in a summer workout environment matter less than the amount of reps, the specified focus and what it signals. In a Curry plus Butler offense with Kerr directing traffic, Kuminga\u2019s shot diet would presumably remain limited. He\u2019d be asked to catch-and-shoot, slash, screen and only occasionally create. But he craves more.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe more you hit those shots, those midrangers, (paint pull-ups and floaters), the more teams start adjusting on you, the more you make your team better, the more people rely on you and let you do those things and let you shoot those types of shots,\u201d Kuminga said. \u201cThat\u2019s pretty much what I\u2019m putting a lot of work in, getting to my area where I wanna get my shots off and getting better and bring my percentages up.\u201d<\/p>\n
Kuminga\u2019s four-season story with the Warriors isn\u2019t about only untapped potential and lack of opportunity.<\/p>\n
He\u2019s had long stretches of relevant production. As a rookie, he started three playoff games and had a couple nice scoring nights in the second round. When Andrew Wiggins was away from the Warriors for the last two months of Kuminga\u2019s second season, Kuminga averaged 14.2 points on 57 percent shooting in 21 post-All-Star break games, helping the Warriors to the sixth seed before Wiggins returned and Kuminga disappeared.<\/p>\n
Kuminga set a franchise record with 138 dunks in his third season. He scored double-digits in 34 straight games. He averaged 20.6 points in January and finished that season at 16.1 points per game on 52.9 percent shooting. His fourth season included a big stretch prior to the ankle sprain \u2014 that at one point had Draymond Green declaring Kuminga up next and accepting a brief demotion \u2014 and the four-game playoff flurry to close against Minnesota.<\/p>\n
\u201cI did it here and there, but it was never a consistent role, a consistent role given to me,\u201d Kuminga said. \u201cIt only happens five games on, 10 games off. I want it to be a consistent role. Because I know what I got. I know what I could bring. I know how much work I put in. I know I\u2019m dedicated to this game, how much I love the game.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s easier to envision Kuminga getting the guaranteed high-usage, on-ball opportunity he desires away from the Warriors. They employ Curry and Butler, and Kerr has made it clear the offense will revolve around those two, only tilting toward Kuminga when one of the two is out of the lineup. There\u2019d be a clearer path on a younger roster without a pecking order this established.<\/p>\n