Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr on Monday outlined the plan on how the organization intends to develop rookies Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody.
Of course, the team is constructed to win now with veteran players Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, Andrew Wiggins and, at some point, Klay Thompson. The minutes may not necessarily be there for Kuminga and Moody so the team will be focused on their development.
“The plan is to develop them every single day,” Kerr said. “What that entails is film work, on-court work and practice, scrimmages, and possibly games. We have to find the right mix of that as a staff and organization. We’ll see where our rotations take us in the preseason and into the regular season and then you make adjustments accordingly.”
The Warriors, like the rest of the NBA, will have more time to practice this season with many COVID-19 protocols being lifted. The majority of the league will undergo less testing now that 90% of players have been vaccinated, giving teams and players more flexibility.
Kuminga and Moody have spent much of their time in San Francisco training at the team facility since the conclusion of summer league. They both understand they will need to do everything they can to get onto the court, from working out to asking questions.
“I’ve been absorbing pretty much everybody, whoever comes into the gym the day I’m working out,” Kuminga said. “After my workout, I usually just sit down and watch what they’re doing. (Andre) Iguodala is right next to my locker so I’ve been asking him a couple of questions, not just about basketball, pretty much everything. I’m getting a lot of knowledge from him.”
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Golden State views Kuminga and Moody as a big part of the future but it will likely take some time before either player logs heavy minutes. The team struggled at times last season to figure out to properly utilize James Wiseman and is not looking to rush either into action too early.
Kuminga and Moody have the luxury of learning from such established players.
The front office also brought back Andre Iguodala as the former NBA Finals MVP has been instrumental in assisting them. The Warriors have set up Kuminga and Moody with a strong supporting cast and it will only be a matter of time before they contribute on a nightly basis.
“I really loved it to be drafted here,” Kuminga said. “I feel like I wanted to get drafted here because it was going to help a lot of my game grow a lot.”
This post originally appeared on Rookie Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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