The Golden State Warriors are enduring a rough stretch of injuries that now includes a major member of their rotation.
The Golden State Warriors are having a tough time right now, struggling to sync in their most recent 123-115 loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday. Unfortunately, just three days after losing star veteran Jimmy Butler for the season with a torn ACL, the Warriors are down another player – one who was likely to step into the lineup in Butler’s absence, despite the awkward situation regarding him. Golden State forward Jonathan Kuminga twisted his left ankle and hyperextended his left knee in the second quarter of the loss to the Mavs and was ruled out with knee soreness.
However, initial testing revelated that neither is believed to be too serious, per ESPN. They further report that Kuminga told them he would wait to see how his knee was feeling on Friday morning before deciding to get an MRI. The injury news comes after the recent reports that Kuminga wants to be traded, but his role immediately grew in importance following Butler’s injury. And Kuminga was playing quite well off the bench against Dallas, scoring 10 points in nine minutes before exiting. The team was plus-18 with him on the floor, and his impact was acknowledged by head coach Steve Kerr when addressing media regarding his injury.
Here is the full story from Warriors Roundtable writer Kyle Ngo on Kerr’s comments and what the role for Kuminga is in the future once healthy.
The trade deadline is in two weeks, and it’s unclear whether Golden State will be able to heal the situation with Kuminga’s animosity. However, he’s played quite well and has been quite efficient in his play since Butler went down over the last two games. If he is healthy enough to play, he’s expected to play a major role in the team’s rotation after not playing in 16 straight games prior to Butler’s injury.