Jonathan Kuminga is set to make his Atlanta Hawks debut against the Washington Wizards, while Kristaps Porziņģis remains sidelined for the Golden State Warriors due to illness. The timing highlights ongoing frustrations for Warriors fans following the trade that sent Kuminga to Atlanta. Porziņģis has played just one game since the deal.
Jonathan Kuminga, recently traded from the Golden State Warriors to the Atlanta Hawks, is expected to suit up for his debut on Wednesday against the Washington Wizards, despite being listed as questionable with a left knee bone bruise. ESPN’s Anthony Slater reported that Kuminga will likely play.
The Warriors acquired Kristaps Porziņģis and Buddy Hield in the trade at the deadline to address frontcourt issues with size, spacing, and rim protection. However, Porziņģis has appeared in only one game for Golden State since the trade and will miss at least the next two due to illness. Slater noted, “Kristaps Porzingis did not make the trip to New Orleans with the Warriors. It’s a quick two-gamer with a back-to-back in Memphis. This would indicate Porzingis (out with illness yesterday) is expected to miss at least the next two games. Draymond Green did make the trip.”
Porziņģis was ruled out Sunday morning before the Warriors' game against the Denver Nuggets, where they upset the team led by Nikola Jokić. Warriors coach Steve Kerr explained the sudden development: “I haven’t talked to him, but I just got a text this morning that he was sick and at the hotel. He’s not even going to come over here.”
This absence compounds challenges for a Warriors team without Stephen Curry, sidelined by patellofemoral pain syndrome, and Jimmy Butler. Earlier optimism had built after Porziņģis was cleared for a slightly increased workload. Kerr said Saturday, “We’ll bump it up a little bit. Talking to the training staff this morning, we’ll be able to bump it up — but not too much.”
Porziņģis had missed 13 games before the trade and three afterward due to Achilles tendinitis, with the team monitoring his minutes carefully. In his sole appearance, he played 17 minutes, scoring 12 points on 5-of-9 shooting, including 2-of-5 from three-point range, and recording two blocks.
Warriors owner Joe Lacob addressed the trade, stating, “Not hard; everyone assumes a lot about that. I liked him as a player, I like him as a person. … At times, he showed a lot of potential for us. Just never quite really worked entirely. And he got injured at inopportune times.” Lacob added, “We all knew we had to do something. But we weren’t going to give him away. Because he is a talent.”
