Kendrick Perkins makes a big U-turn to the position of one Golden State Warriors star in the team.
The Golden State Warriors’ anguish continued in Game 3 of the Western Conference semi-final against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Despite a 33-point effort from Jimmy Butler, the Warriors went through a heartbreaking 102-97 defeat in Game 3.
Apart from Butler, 22-year-old Jonathan Kuminga did everything with his power to help Dub avoid another defeat, but his efforts went to waste.
The past few weeks have not been easy for Cuminga. After all, head coach Steve Kerr ousted him out of the rotation.
Despite this sudden change in role, Kuminga patiently waited for his opportunity, and he proved his worth in Game 3.
According to Sofa Scole, Kuminga finished the night with 30 points, six rebounds, three assists and two blocks to his name.
Kuminga also had a very efficient scoring night as he shot 61.1% off the field. With that in mind, ESPN’s Kendrick Perkins urged manager Kerr not to “never” drive Kuminga out of the rotation again.
“Like I said, Kuminga should never have been outside the rotation. The young man was so athletic that he killed him not on the floor,” Perkins wrote in X.
There’s no doubt that Kuminga was incredible in the Warriors’ Game 3 loss. He stepped up in Steph Curry’s absence as the 4x NBA champions are unlikely to return to before Game 6.
Returning to Perkins’ recent comments, ESPN analysts contradicted his statement about Kuminga. After all, Perkins urged Coach Kerr to sit down for the other playoffs after a 0-point outing for the game 7 vs. Houston Rockets.
“We thought it would be Jonathan Kuminga (the Warriors third scoring option), but mentally he’s not there so they need to get him to sit for the rest of the playoffs,” Perkins said previously.
It’s perfectly fine for a change in player opinion, but Perkins contradicts his statement, making it seem he has little attention to Kuminga. Instead, he simply responds to what fans want to hear every night.