Kuminga’s Ankle Sprain Raises More Trade Questions for Sliding Warriors

The Warriors have not been themselves lately. After their great start, they’ve lost confidence, have no rhythm, and recently suffered one of their worst losses of the season (129-99) in a blowout at home to the surging Sacramento Kings. Now, things are going to get even worse.

According to reports, the team’s starting forward Jonathan Kuminga is set to miss time with an ankle injury he suffered in the Warriors win against the Grizzlies. The team has described the sprain as “significant,” which is not a good sign for the already-damaged franchise.

(Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

The Warriors have been one of the league’s worst teams over the past month. The games they have come out on top have largely been a team effort, with Kuminga being at the center of a lot of them. He’s still young and rough around the edges, but the talent is definitely there.

The athletic wing is averaging 16.8 points a game along with 5 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and nearly 1 steal. While those stats have not necessarily led to wins, missing that production will make things harder.

A Rough Injury

Kuminga went down late in the second quarter against Memphis when he contested a shot by Jake LaRavia. After jumping up, he landed in a crowd and landed awkwardly among Andrew Wiggins and Brandon Clarke as they jostled for position. He immediately checked out of the game and did not return.

After the injury, Kuminga underwent an MRI that revealed the bad news. Doctors now expect him to miss at least three weeks while he recovers. That’s a significant amount of games.

His absence is going to be extremely tough for the Warriors, who are already running out of bodies to put on the court. They have plenty of options, but none of them bring the hustle or tenacity that Kuminga does. Still, the team is optimistic they can weather the storm.

“Brutal,” head coach Steve Kerr said of the injury. “[Kuminga] has been playing so well and obviously such a big part of what we’re doing and he’s our most athletic scorer and finisher…It’s a tough one. We do feel good about our depth and our ability to withstand his loss. So Kyle [Anderson], Moses [Moody], those guys will get more of an opportunity and I’m excited about that.”

Looking for a Trade

Losing Kuminga hurts the Warriors on the court, but it has several significant offcourt implications as well. The biggest being what Golden State plans to do with February’s trade deadline looming on the horizon.

Early season reports speculated the Warriors might want to move Kuminga, as the young guard has an incredible amount of potential. However, now that he’s one of the lone bright spots on the team, them shipping him off seems incredibly unlikely.

He and Golden State did not agree on a rookie scale extension before October, which means he is set to be a restricted free agent after the season. Despite that, it’s hard to see the Warriors making a big move with him given their current circumstances.

Rather, the team may now be more likely to bring someone else in. That would make sense, as the next month is likely going to make or break the season for Golden State. They would take any help they can get.

Bringing in Backup

The Warriors don’t have a lot of players they could move, especially with Kuminga being off the table. They need to do something soon, however, as without him they aren’t the same team.

While his absence wasn’t the only issue, the Kings loss showed just how much they missed his energy. The team could not find any type of rhythm on either side of the ball. They floundered early, couldn’t play defense, and were ran off the floor. They also committed eight turnovers in the first quarter, showing just how out of sync they were.

There are a few players around the league who could fix such issues, with one of the biggest being Jimmy Butler. The superstar is likely never going to play for the Heat again following his recent seven-game suspension, making him a great trade target.

Miami is actively listening to offers from around the league, and it makes sense that the Warriors are in that conversation. Not only would Butler fill in for Kuminga during his recovery, he’d bring in more star power and give Curry another true threat in the backcourt.

That being said, the Warriors aren’t in a hurry either. They know they have to act, but they’re willing to wait before showing their hand.

“I think with Dennis [Schroder] in the mix now we have a chance to really be a great defensive team again,” explained Kerr. “Like we were early in the year. And if we can put it together, then we may not need to do anything (trade-wise). But we definitely need to take this next month and really see what we have.”