I have a one-word cure for your post-49ers blues:
Kuminga!
It’s fun to say. Like, “Jenga!” Or, “Yahtzee!” Or, “Eureka!”
Kuminga!
Seems to almost demand the exclamation point, too.
Maybe that’s because when we play that sound bite of NBA Commissioner Adam Silver on Draft Night, Silver says “Kuminga!” like he’s exclaiming something extraordinary.
Silver yelped the name when the Warriors used the No. 7 pick of the 2021 NBA Draft on a then-18-year-old from the Democratic Republic of the Congo named Jonathan Kuminga. His circuit to draft night went from childhood in Africa to three different high schools in West Virginia, New York and New Jersey, followed by a one-year stint in the G-League to top off a fairly nomadic journey for such a young man.
Now, the kid is home at Chase Center. Not a bad place to call home, lockering with dudes named Steph and Klay. He is getting called “The Human Helicopter” by Bob Fitzgerald and Kelenna Azubuike. He wears the stylish double-zero jersey. And, true to his pre-draft scouting report, he treats a 10-foot basketball rim like a plaything.
Yes, Jordan Poole’s development as a shooter bodes well for the future. Yes, there is hope for fellow draft pick Moses Moody to be the scorer he was at college in Arkansas. Yes, there is hope — although somewhat troubled hope, given his knee injury — for the loping athleticism of 2020 draft prize James Wiseman.
But when you think the future of the Warriors, you start to think of it one way:
Kuminga!
The kid has only played 41 games. He only averages 12.8 minutes per game. He only averages 7 points and 2.6 rebounds per game. His player efficiency rating is only 13.8, below the league average of 15.
But… have you seen him play?
And… have you seen him play lately?
During this Warriors’ 8-game win streak, Kuminga has three double-digit scoring games (22 in the blowout over Dallas; 19 in the win-of-the-year at San Antonio; and 18 Thursday night vs. the Kings at Chase.) In his last two games, he’s 16-of-25 from the field. Of course, field goal percentage is a favorable stat when your hands are above the rim and the ball is in your hands.
More than stats, Kuminga has provided explosive energy to an already championship-caliber club. Fans buzz when he enters. Teammates are imploring him to enter the NBA All-Star Dunk Contest. For a team that was perceived by some to be “aging” as Steph Curry, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green battle their 30s and injuries, his injection of teenage charisma is just what Dr. Bob Myers ordered.
And, of course, the dunks. Reverse dunks. Windmill dunks. Putback dunks. Standard dunks. Head-in-the-clouds dunks. Kuminga dunks like no Warrior since, well, Jason Richardson won that thing Kuminga’s teammates want him to win.
An NBA Dunk contest title isn’t what will win the Warriors a championship. But Kuminga’s strength, his power, his blow-by ability — that will help them, and certainly speaks well for the team’s nucleus well into the 2020s, God willing and the creeks don’t rise.
I’ve struggled to come up with a comp to Kuminga when I see his electric play. Many have said Shawn Marion. Sure, a little. I’ve heard Shawn Kemp, pre-weight gain. I see some of that. Some have said Dominique Wilkins. That’s a helluva comp.
But there’s something different about Kuminga’s body and length. He presents a different form than anything I’ve seen in a while, if ever.
I think the only comp to Kuminga is — all together now — Kuminga!
