Jonathan Kuminga waited patiently for his number to be called, and when the Warriors needed him most, it finally did.
After receiving three consecutive DNPs (Did Not Play) in Golden State's previous three regular- and postseason games, Kuminga finally saw action in the Warriors' 109-94 Game 2 loss to the Houston Rockets on Wednesday at Toyota Center.
After star forward Jimmy Butler left the game in the first quarter with a pelvis contusion, Warriors coach Steve Kerr turned to the 22-year-old, who scored 11 points with three rebounds and two assists in 26 minutes off the bench while shooting 4 of 12 from the field and 2 of 5 from 3-point range.
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SIGN UP HERE Although it was a mixed bag for Kuminga off the bench, Warriors superstar Steph Curry was impressed with the energy the young forward showed and expressed his trust in his young teammate, regardless of when and how often he plays moving forward.
"I thought he played aggressive, I know he probably wants to play better and knock the rust off, but as soon as Jimmy went down, I actually saw him on the bench and gave him a little love and knew he was going to get his number called pretty quickly," Curry said of Kuminga. "And that is the nature of this league.
"For him to come out and play with energy and aggressiveness and just understand he can impact the game and he's going to have a huge part in what we do. I think whether Jimmy's out there or not, it could swing a different way. And that's the challenge and it's always been for him to see the pictures, understand the intensity that's out there, try to be in the right spots defensively and when he was opportunities to be aggressive on the offensive end, take them. We trust him when he has the ball in his hands, however many minutes he's out there, and be ready to play."
The yo-yoing between the bench and the court is nothing new for Kuminga, who has shown immense potential in his four seasons with the Warriors, but has yet to establish -- and hold on to -- a consistent role in Kerr's rotations.
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“I kind of grew into it,” Kuminga told reporters after the game. “I’ve been here for four years, and throughout these four years, there were times I didn’t play, and it messes with my head sometimes as a very young player, but I kind of grew into it.
“So, it’s just something I feel like I’m getting better at and I’m still [learning] in controlling those types of [emotions], conversations, moments and situations knowing that no matter what I’m doing, when they tell me things like that, [I’m no longer affected].”
It's unclear what Kuminga's role will be moving forward in the series. That all depends on the severity of Butler's injury. If the 35-year-old were to miss time, Kuminga would be a likely candidate to play big minutes at the position.
"He stayed ready and got some minutes, and it's good, because we may need him and he needed to develop a little rhythm after missing the last few games," Kerr said of Kuminga.
Kerr, however, was noncommittal about Kuminga sliding into Butler's spot in the lineup and said the Warriors will have to "re-think everything" if Butler were to miss time.
Regardless of what his role might be in this series, and in the future, Kuminga will be prepared.
"You gotta stay ready," Kuminga added. "It is tough [to get DNPs]. For any player it's gonna be tough, but what am I gonna do about it? You just gotta stay ready. Whenever your moment happens, it's going to happen... I just try to stay ready and not really think about why I'm not playing."