"A DNP-Coach's Decision for a healthy, former No. 7 overall pick who just signed a contract making him the Warriors' fourth-highest-paid player isn't a message or nudge. It's a scream of frustration. It's Steve Kerr standing on the scorers' table with a megaphone, announcing to the league that he would rather play a rotating cast of try-hards and NBA geriatrics than watch Kuminga miss another box-out, treat a defensive rotation like a strictly optional suggestion, or stop the ball dead for another 10-dribble isolation experiment."
"Kerr has already tried the carrot. He handed Kuminga a permanent starting job on a silver platter after the forward showed a modicum of buy-in to start the season. He praised the athleticism. He lauded the professionalism. He gave Kuminga all the external validation that he could handle for doing the right thing for like, a week. And how did Kuminga respond? By rolling his eyes and promptly reverting to his factory settings, which is me-first basketball."
"So now, Kerr is using the stick. Benching Kuminga entirely against the Bulls wasn't just tactical; it was punitive. It was Kerr saying, simply, I cannot trust you. And trust is the currency of the realm in the Church of the Golden State Warriors. You don't have to be Stephen Curry to thrive in this system, but you do have to genuflect at the altar of ball movement and defensive connectivity."
Jonathan Kuminga was given a DNP-Coach's Decision in Chicago despite being healthy and recently signing a contract that made him the Warriors' fourth-highest-paid player. Coach Steve Kerr benched Kuminga as a punitive response to repeated defensive lapses, missed box-outs, optional rotations, and prolonged isolation plays. Kerr previously rewarded early-season buy-in with a permanent starting role and public praise, but Kuminga reverted to me-first basketball. The benching signals a trust issue and a demand for adherence to the Warriors' system emphasizing ball movement, defensive connectivity, and accountability. Kerr's action is framed as a final attempt to force behavioral change.
Read at www.mercurynews.com
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