Though it may have been a pristine 72 degrees in Atlanta this weekend, it must have felt as frigid as the Arctic for Jonathan Kuminga in a dismal 3-of-10, 0-of-6 from deep shooting performance en route to a Hawks' loss.
While Kuminga seemed to have ice in his veins in beautiful performances against New York in Games 2 and 3, he completely flipped the script in the worst way possible in Game 4. The Hawks are now left with a difficult question—how should they utilize the inconsistent youngster this week in the three most important games of their season?
How should Coach Snyder utilize JK in Games 5-7?
I don't blame Coach Snyder for keeping Kuminga on the floor throughout a rough Game 4 performance, given the explosive swing he provided in the two prior games.
If Kuminga gets off to a cold start in a (nearly) must-win Game 5, however, I wouldn't be surprised if Quin pulls the plug early in favor of more consistent rotational options (e.g., more Dyson Daniels or Corey Kispert minutes).
That being said, Kuminga has worked beautifully down low against the Knicks, and Coach Snyder should continue to encourage him to be aggressive. When JK is able to get down low with a bully-ball brand of basketball, things tend to work out in his favor.
Kuminga's future with Atlanta: to extend, or not to extend?
The looming question in Atlanta regarding Jonathan Kuminga is whether or not the organization believes in his talents moving forward.
There are three reasonable paths that the Hawks could take this summer: accept Kuminga's player option, restructure his contract to something more reasonable that stretches beyond the 2026-2027 season, or sign-and-trade Kuminga to an interested franchise.
As it stands, Kuminga has both buoyed the Hawks at times (late in Games 2 and 3, granting the Hawks two much-needed victories in a tight series against New York) and sunk their ship at others (Game 4 with a subpar scoring performance).
The mystery behind Kuminga—at least to me, and I hope to Onsi Saleh as well—is still potent enough to warrant an extension this summer, rather than dealing him elsewhere. I would strongly disagree with picking up his $24.3M player option, but perhaps a four-year, $60M deal would benefit both parties.
With such a deal, Kuminga would secure a lengthy contract in the league to ensure against injury, and the Hawks would have the ability to strike gold on a value deal, much like they did with Nickeil Alexander-Walker last summer.
Kuminga's inconsistency has both been a bane and a boon for the streaky Hawks this postseason. Look for the final three games to make or break his valuation this summer—Kuminga might have the most to prove of anyone on the hardwood through the remainder of the hotly-contested Knicks series.
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