Jonathan Kuminga is the latest Warrior to deal with a bizarre injury this season.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr announced during his pregame press conference Thursday at FedExForum that Kuminga is out against the Memphis Grizzlies after he appeared to roll his right ankle in warm-ups before Golden State takes on its growing rivals.
The injury happened on a drill just like any other. Kuminga gathered for a dunk or layup near the basket and fell to the hardwood, where he remained on the ground for a while.
Kuminga rolled his left ankle Tuesday night early in the first quarter of the Warriors’ loss to the Oklahoma City Thunder. He was forced to leave the game after being evaluated by director of medical services Drew Yoder. The 20-year-old forward was able to return and put together one of his better performances of the season.
Starting and playing 28 minutes, Kuminga scored 21 points, his second-most this season, in the loss. He was 8 of 11 from the field and made all four of his free throws. Kuminga also added three rebounds, two assists, two steals and was a plus-3 in plus/minus rating.
Coming into Thursday’s game, Kuminga was listed as probable with a left ankle sprain. Kevon Looney (back soreness) was listed as probable, as was Andre Iguodala (right hip soreness). Kerr said both players intended to play, but had to come out clean from warm-ups.
“I expect them to play, but they’ve got to get through warm-ups too,” Kerr told reporters in Memphis. “So, hopefully no more injuries in warmups.”
Draymond Green continues to play through a left hand issue, but was not listed on the injury list. Andrew Wiggins is set to miss his 10th straight game and remains away from the team due to a family matter. Gary Payton II continues to rehab a core/adductor injury, and an update is expected next week.
The Warriors have dropped their first two games of their three-game road trip, and will be without a player whose production is starting to reach his potential. Since returning from the NBA All-Star break, Kuminga is averaging 13.8 points and 4.8 rebounds in eight games (four starts) while shooting 52.9 percent from the field and 40 percent from 3-point range.
This season has been full of bumps in the road, and Kuminga’s ankle issue is just the latest on a long list.