The Warriors’ young star Jonathan Kuminga made headlines last week for publicly calling out HC Steve Kerr. The reason? Coach Kerr allowed him a window of just 19 minutes of game time on Thursday’s 13-127 loss against Denver. The next day, a report came to light that hinted at the 21-year-old star’s dissatisfaction with the Coach. The report claimed that Kuminga was disheartened and had lost faith in Kerr’s ability to help him reach his full potential.
Tensions were high, and it appeared as if the two’s relationship had been severed. However, they met later that day and dispelled any sort of misunderstanding between them. Despite this, former NBA Champion and Warriors legend Stephen Jackson vehemently criticizes Kuminga for doing what he did.
Stephen Jackson now understands why Draymond acts up
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In an episode of his podcast show All the Smoke, Jackson, goes off on Kuminga. Having played in the NBA for 17 seasons, he is disappointed that times are different now from then, “It’s different these days man, I’m telling you and you wonder why Draymond act the way he do cuz look at this s*** they dealing with in the league now, you know what I’m saying? These young players play when they want to, they say what they want, they do what they want.”
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Hilariously, Jackson adds that if he were still playing, he would go around choking people on the court like Draymond because he would be frustrated too. On a serious note, while acknowledging his love for Kuminga as a player, Jackson says that he needs to respect the Coach. “You do not have the right to even speak on the HoF Coach, HoF player Steve Kerr,” Jackson says. He believes that the young forward should have taken Coach Kerr to the side and spoken to him in private instead of blowing things out of proportion.
In another timeline, Kuminga could’ve been fired
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To put things into perspective, the NBA veteran is confident that if Kuminga had acted out like this during their time back in the late 1990s and early 2000s, he would have been let go within a week because there was no room for disrespect. Moreover, on his way out, a vet would have pulled him aside and knocked some sense into him.
Kuminga calling out Steve Kerr in the media must have been a huge mistake, but right now the Warriors have bigger issues at hand. They took a beating in their recent game with a 141-105 loss against the Pelicans. They are at the bottom of the Pacific Division with a 17-20 record, and it is about time they bring back their spark. Otherwise, they will have to wave goodbye to the playoffs.
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What is your take on Stephen Jackson’s opinion on the Kuminga-Kerr issue? Let us know in the comments below!