Warriors move Kuminga to bench vs. Pelicans

The Golden State Warriors are bringing forward Jonathan Kuminga off the bench for Tuesday's contest against the New Orleans Pelicans.

With Stephen Curry, Andrew Wiggins, and De'Anthony Melton unavailable, the Warriors will start Brandin Podziemski, Buddy Hield, Moses Moody, Draymond Green, and Trayce Jackson-Davis.

In three contests this year, Kuminga has averaged eight points, 3.3 rebounds, an assist, and a steal in 19.7 minutes. The fourth-year forward has struggled from the field, shooting 33%.

Head coach Steve Kerr isn't worried, though.

"Three games is nothing, I don't ever worry about a small sample size like that," Kerr said pregame, per NBC Sports. "JK had a really good preseason. He'll come around. We're going to need his force, his athleticism, and tonight could be a big night for him in that regard depending on how the game plays out."

Kuminga said an hour before tipoff that he hadn't heard from Kerr.

"It’s not my decision," Kuminga said, according to Danny Emerman of the Bay Area News Group. "This is my fourth year. Not the first time things like that happened. I'm not the coach, it's his decision."

It was reported in January that Kuminga believed Kerr was preventing him from reaching his potential after he benched the 22-year-old in a contest against the Denver Nuggets. Kuminga averaged 18.7 points and started 34 of the last 41 games last season.

The Warriors and Kuminga were unable to reach an agreement on a long-term extension on his rookie deal earlier in October. The franchise kept him off the table in trade talks this summer, including in a reported offer for Lauri Markkanen of the Utah Jazz.