The Golden State Warriors spared the entire NBA community by ending the Jonathan Kuminga era once and for all. Kuminga has been playing well since the Warriors traded him to the Atlanta Hawks, which has drawn ire from some NBA alumni-turned-analysts. The ire has been specifically directed toward head coach Steve Kerr.
Kendrick Perkins Believes Steve Kerr is to Blame for the Warriors-Jonathan Kuminga fallout
During his appearance on “Road Trippin’,” former NBA player and NBA Champion Kendrick Perkins singled out Kerr for what happened between the Warriors and Kuminga.
“They gave up on this man too soon,” Perkins said. “Not only did we know us four, the ‘Road Trippin family,’ knew that Jonathan Kuminga had a high ceiling. Steph Curry knew it, Draymond Green knew it, Jimmy Butler knew it. The only person that didn’t believe was Steve Kerr.”
Perkins believes Kerr’s refusal to adapt to “the new generation” is why he and the Warriors couldn’t make it work with Kuminga.
“You couldn’t find a way to be a dog whisperer in the NBA to be able to get on the same page, wrap your arm around Jonathan Kuminga, make him feel love in order to make him and y’all get on the same page so that you can have one of the most athletic guys in the league fit your system or adjust just a little bit to get the best out of him? It makes no sense at all.”
Kendrick Perkins says that Steve Kerr and the Golden State Warriors gave up on Jonathan Kuminga too early:
“They gave up on this man too soon, not only that we know us four the road trippin family. Knew that Jonathan Kuminga had a high ceiling. Steph Curry knew it, Draymond… pic.twitter.com/1pdxTTG2De
— NBA Courtside (@NBA__Courtside) March 3, 2026
It is a shame that the young wing couldn’t carve out a niche with the Warriors, but it is way too early to call this a disaster until the Hawks get a bigger sample size. Kuminga’s talent is why the Warriors weren’t so quick to trade him, but there’s still no conclusive proof they truly messed up. There’s especially no proof that Kerr was responsible for this, as evidence points to him finding a way to make things work.
Throughout his tenure as Warriors coach, Kerr’s track record speaks for itself. For what it’s worth, he tried to work his magic with Kuminga and never found the right combination despite the talent he possesses. Is that his fault or is that Kuminga’s? We won’t know because not much time has passed to pass judgment.
It’s only been three games. The Hawks is the NBA’s most remarkably mediocre team at 31-31, having won three straight, but two of those wins were against Washington – one of the NBA’s worst teams – and Portland – currently only in the play-in race. Perkins talks as though Kuminga is such a game-changer when hardly anything has changed since the Hawks acquired him at the trade deadline.
The Warriors are definitely in a free fall, but whether err’s failing to develop Kuminga adequately truly contributed to it is still up in the air.
