Jonathan Kuminga's Conflict With Kerr, Warriors Before Hawks Trade Detailed in Latest NBA Rumors

In the long-running saga between Jonathan Kuminga and Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, the final straw in their often-contentious relationship may have come on Dec. 10.

Per ESPN's Anthony Slater, that was the day the two met in Kerr's office for a discussion initially about Kuminga missing a "team-requested event and alert him that someone around him was taking too much food from the family room."

The meeting ended with both Kerr and Kuminga venting their frustrations with each other:

"Kerr voicing his displeasure with Kuminga's lack of buy-in and competitiveness toward the team goals and Kuminga letting out his hurt about Kerr's longtime lack of belief in him as a player. The meeting ended, sources familiar with the exchange said, with Kerr slamming his white board in frustration."

Kuminga had been unhappy with Kerr prior to the meeting. Three days earlier, after not using Kuminga against the Chicago Bulls, Kerr told reporters following the game that it "happens to everybody pretty much, other than the stars."

According to Slater, Kuminga took that comment as a dig at him.

"See," Kuminga said. "That's the s--t I'm talking about. Why's he gotta say that?"

There was also a period during the stretch in which Kuminga only appeared in three games from Dec. 7 through Feb. 3 when he "declined three mop-up duty opportunities" and ruled himself out of a Jan. 2 game against the Oklahoma City Thunder due to a sore back even though Kerr had been planning to give him significant playing time since the Warriors were without Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green, according to Slater.

The Thunder game was a last straw for the organization, which viewed it as a "a sign he'd quit on the team." Kuminga, in turn, was already operating as if the Warriors had given up on him and were using the Oklahoma City matchup "as a recipe to shame him."

Kuminga started this season looking like he may have turned a corner. He averaged 17.2 points on 51.4 percent shooting, 7.1 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game in his first nine starts.

After a 10-of-29 shooting stretch over his next four games, Kuminga was inactive for seven straight games. He would only appear in seven of Golden State's next 38 games, averaging 16.7 minutes per contest during that stretch, before getting traded to the Atlanta Hawks on Feb. 5.

Kuminga did suffer a bone bruise in his left knee during a Jan. 22 loss to the Dallas Mavericks that also impacted his availability.

Kuminga has yet to make his Hawks debut as a result of the knee injury. He will be reevaluated after the All-Star break to determine when he can return to play.

The deal to Atlanta ended a tumultuous five-year run between Kuminga, Kerr and the Warriors. He did win an NBA title with the club during his rookie season in 2021-22, but never lived up to the hype around him as the No. 7 overall pick in the 2021 draft.

Kuminga averaged 12.5 points and 4.2 rebounds per game in 278 appearances with the Warriors.