The Golden State Warriors defeated the Chicago Bulls 123-91 on Sunday. Although the team didn’t have Steph Curry and Draymond Green, others stepped up to secure the victory. Jimmy Butler took charge for the Warriors with his 19 points, eight rebounds, six assists and two steals. Brandin Podziemski added 21 points off the bench. However, attention was on coach Steve Kerr’s decision not to give Jonathan Kuminga any minutes.
Ahead of the 2025-26 NBA season, there have been talks about a potential trade with Kuminga. This started after he wasn’t given a contract extension. Before the start of the new year, however, he struck a deal to stay in Golden State with a two-year, $48.5 million contract extension.
At first, it looked like the 6-foot-8 forward earned Kerr’s trust. He averaged a respectable 29.1 minutes in his first 12 games. In his 13th game, he suffered an injury that sidelined him for seven straight games. In the first four games since his return, however, he’s slowly struggled to average the same number of minutes, only logging 19.3 during that stretch.
Against the Bulls, Jonathan Kuminga did not play a second and was just on the bench. He wasn’t part of the injury report ahead of the contest. Following their win, Kerr downplayed the forward’s DNP in the box score.
“Happens to everyone in the league, other than the stars. Guys come in and out of the rotation, depending on who’s available, how the team is playing,” Kerr said.
Steve Kerr on the Jonathan Kuminga DNP tonight: “Happens to everyone in the league, other than the stars. Guys come in and out of the rotation, depending on who’s available, how the team is playing. pic.twitter.com/uyp3bcBoqZ
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) December 8, 2025
Players who are more inexperienced than Kuminga, like Pat Spencer and Gui Santos, had playing time. However, Kuminga and even Seth Curry, who have been in the NBA longer, did not play.
Warriors analyst says Jonathan Kuminga hasn’t “earned” his role
The Warriors’ main concern is how to fit Jonathan Kuminga in Kerr’s system. He’s not an outside sniper like Steph Curry and doesn’t have the IQ of Draymond Green. When the team traded for Butler last season, Kuminga’s role diminished.
Warriors analyst Tim Kawakami explained that the young forward hasn’t earned how to do his role, which is to be a star.
“If you ask him what he wants? He wants 20 shots a game and to play 35 minutes a game. You can tell. It’s in his body language, it’s in everything he does. That’s fine,” Kawakami said on the “Willard and Dobbs” show. “You should want that when you’re a basketball player, especially with his skill set. He hasn’t earned it with the Warriors. He just hasn’t.”
The analyst said that Kuminga has to earn it during games when Curry is out. But he hasn’t done that this year.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
