Without Stephen Curry in the series against the Minnesota Timberwolves, the Warriors’ forgotten gem, Jonathan Kuminga, showed out. He became their attacking pillar, compiling three straight games with 20+ points. Impressive? Not for the vision of Steve Kerr. Even after his stellar performances, Kerr revealed he doesn’t see Kuminga fit in the current composition of the Warriors. The explosive forward wants minutes, and Kerr seems reluctant to do so.

But do all the Warriors agree? Draymond Green had an interesting take. Since he hasn’t seen Kuminga consistently play major minutes in a season, his stance is undetermined. “I don’t know that I necessarily agree because you just haven’t seen it,” he said in response to Kerr’s statement.

Now keep in mind, Draymond Green considers Kuminga to be his rookie. Not only has he praised his potential, but on multiple occassions has vouched for him to remain a Warrior. However, what does supersede his respect for Kuminga, is the respect for Steve Kerr. So even though he isn’t in full agreement, he does trust Kerr’s intuition.

“When you look at Steve, one thing that he’s shown as a coach is he going to make the decision that he think is best regardless of what it comes with. We’re talking about the same man, the same legend that didn’t play Jayson Tatum in the Olympics and dealt with all flack that came with that. But at the end, to his point, his ultimate goal is to win,” he said on The Draymond Green Show.

Hence, he wants Jonathan Kuminga to be wise during the offseason. It’s a point where he needs to make a decision. And Draymond Green wats him to keep his future and development in mind while doing so. “If you’re JK, you got to make the best decision for you. You got to try to put yourself in the best position that you can possibly put yourself in,” he continued.

But there’s is something else he wants the 22 year old to be mindful of. As strange as it may sounds, he wants the youthful forward to operate silently.

Trading Jonathan Kuminga is complicated

Draymond Green wants to see Kuminga flourish. However, the blazing forward is also at a weird impasse. With so much said from Steve Kerr, there is a natural inclination to respond. That’s exactly what Green doesn’t want Kuminga to do because “JK can only lose here,”. With Kerr’s championship pedigree, Green thinks saying something back would only hurt Kuminga’s image.

But as deep as this drawn out tension between the two camps goes, it’s seems certain that Jonathan Kuminga will find a new home next season.

As a restricted free agent, the Warriors don’t hold much power. The most they can do is match any incoming offer in hopes of dealing Kuminga further. But due to the CBA’s complications, making a huge splash also seems unlikely. According to Forbes, “If Kuminga signed a new contract starting at $25 million as part of a sign-and-trade, he’d count as $12.5 million in outgoing salary for the Warriors and $25 million for his new team,”.

What this would do is essentially limit the Warriors from making any moves further down the line. Considering how Jimmy Butler turned their season around, the Bay may want that option open. Currently, their roster is fairly untested without Stephen Curry. And in this final act, they need to address that concern during free agency.

Paving a way for another star seems tough unless the Warriors top brass is willing to go past the second apron. At the same time, if there was ever a time to do so again, it would be now.

Which team do you think Jonathan Kuminga will be on next season? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.