Key Warriors Trade Piece Gets Injured Right Before Deadline

A huge wrench was thrown in the Golden State Warriors' season last week. When their second-best player, Jimmy Butler, went down with an ACL tear, it seemed like the Warriors' hopes of contending for an NBA championship were probably over. 

There was one silver lining to Butler’s injury. It forced the Warriors’ coaching staff to start playing Jonathan Kuminga. Kuminga had been sitting on the Warriors’ bench awaiting a trade, unable to get into the rotation. When Butler went down, it opened up the chance for Kuminga to get back into the rotation. 

Giving Kuminga a chance to showcase his skills could actually greatly benefit the Warriors. Since he’s been riding the bench, his trade value has slowly declined. With some actual playing time, Kuminga could once again show the rest of the league why trading for him is a good idea. 

In Kuminga’s first game post-Butler injury, it seemed like that might be exactly what would happen. In only 21 minutes, Kuminga scored 20 points, had five rebounds, and two assists. He shot 7-of-10 from the field and looked like the potential young star the Warriors are hoping the rest of the league wants. 

Unfortunately for Kuminga and the Warriors, bad injury luck struck once again. Kuminga went down after an awkward landing in his second game back in the lineup, ruining his and the Warriors' chances of improving his trade value. 

The Warriors announced, “Jonathan Kuminga, who exited Thursday’s game at Dallas with 3:52 remaining in the second quarter due to a sore left knee, underwent an MRI on Friday. The MRI confirmed that Kuminga has a bone bruise as a result of the hyperextension injury. His progress will be monitored, and a re-evaluation date will be determined in the coming days.”

This injury could keep him out until after the trade deadline. If the Warriors are going to deal him, it’s probably going to be for whatever his current value is.