Warriors' Steve Kerr wishes the best for Jonathan Kuminga: ‘I hope JK finds his way'

PHOENIX - A sense of sadness passed Thursday morning through Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr as he sat inside Mortgage Matchup Center preparing to scheme against the Phoenix Suns.

The Warriors were at shootaround. 

Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield (and Trayce Jackson-Davis) weren't.

As Kerr explained hours later amid his reflection: "It's one of the weirdest things about this profession is that you become really close with someone and you're with them literally all day every day, all day, maybe for a season, maybe for two or three years and then all of a sudden."

He snapped his fingers.

"I think that was the prevailing notion this morning. … It was more one of sadness than anything else."

Kerr was wistful discussing the deal that sent the explosive fifth-year forward and the smiley, sharpshooting 10th-year guard to the Atlanta Hawks for 11th-year big man Kristaps Porzingis. Kuminga's talents were mostly untapped in his 4½ -year run for the Warriors, for whom his fit remained imperfect as Kerr lamented - wishing him well.

As Kerr would add while speaking pregame, noting he spoke Wednesday night with Kuminga: "I hope JK finds his way, whether it's Atlanta or wherever else. I really want to see him succeed and I'm sorry it didn't happen here. We all take ownership of that and definitely things I could've done better. … In the end two quality human beings and we're going to miss both of them."

Kuminga was tabbed by Golden State the seventh overall draft pick in 2021 - and a backup on a championship team with a tried-and-true way of winning games. As Kerr acknowledged about Kuminga, "opportunity is everything" and with the Warriors, his opportunities oscillated weekly, it seemed. Their grizzled group was urgent to win and didn't provide the runway to play through the kind of mistakes befitting of an unvarnished lottery pick.

As a forceful driving finisher and a streaky shooter, defender and passer, Kuminga was a part-time everything, but not a full-time anything.

"The right path, for us, for him - it was always tricky to navigate and we all share in that, myself included," Kerr said. "He was undoubtedly put in a some tough spots coming to a championship team his rookie year. A team that was continuing to try to compete at the highest level. He got here with very little experience and that's a tough thing to reconcile and I wish I had done a better job of making that happen."

Kuminga leaves midway through the first year of a two-year contract he reluctantly signed in October - after a summer of contentious negotiations - worth up to $48.5 million with a team option in 2026-27. Porzingis was a pivot away from Milwaukee Bucks star forward Giannis Antetetokounmpo, for whom the Warriors pursued a trade though he wasn't dealt by the NBA's trade deadline.

The Warriors also had trade interest in Memphis Grizzlies turned Utah Jazz forward Jaren Jackson Jr. - for whom Memphis received a package highlighted by three first-round draft picks - league sources confirmed. Porzingis offers similar skills without Jackson's sizable salary commitment. His $30.7 million contract expires this summer.

Said Kerr of Porzingis, with whom he played telephone tag Thursday: "The kind of player we've been looking for, for years. Legitimate 3-point shooter. Rim protector. Tough to find that combination in one player. The biggest thing is his health. I don't think we would have made the trade if we didn't think he could be healthy and consistent in terms of being in the lineup. So, that's the plan."

Porzingis brings to San Francisco a fined-tuned jumper (36.6% career 3-point shooting) with a 7-foot-2 frame he stretches to play above the rim. He also brings an imposing defensive presence by simply standing in the paint with a history of knee injuries and a diagnosis of POTS, an energy-zapping condition.

Out for the Hawks since Jan. 7, Porzingis has played 17 games this season - averaging 17.1 points (45.7% shooting, 36% 3-point shooting), 5.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists. He hasn't played more than 70 games since his rookie season of 2015-16. He's set to meet the Warriors on Friday in Los Angeles, though Kerr doesn't think he'll play Saturday against the Lakers.

As for the lessons learned through Kuminga - for whom Golden State posted a tribute video to X with highlights of his play and his kindness in the community - Kerr said "we're in a business where it's really hard to make everything just right. It's so difficult because there's no right or wrong answer. It's not a math equation and every time is trying to find the sweet spot. We found one obviously for whatever it was. … It was almost unprecedented it was so hard to do.

"We'll have internal discussions organizationally about what we need to go going forward. It should be happening all the time - and it is."

Though Stephen Curry is sidelined with runner's knee and Jimmy Butler is due for right ACL repair Feb. 9 in Los Angeles, Kerr is hoping for a playoff push that Porzingis can aid. He acknowledged the obvious: Golden State's ceiling "is absolutely" lower without Butler healthy.

But it's on to the rest of the season now.

Sadness be damned.

"This is what the season is about - 82 games and you have ups and downs," he said. "But you just keep fighting and finding your way and then ultimately, see if you can be healthy going into the playoffs like last year, and make a run."

This article originally published at Warriors' Steve Kerr wishes the best for Jonathan Kuminga: ‘I hope JK finds his way'.