JaVale McGee already has three NBA championship rings and he believes joining the Suns gives him a good chance to get another one, writes Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic. McGee chose the defending Western Conference champs in free agency, signing a one-year contract worth $5MM, and he sees his role as a mentor who can contribute valuable minutes as a backup center.
“I feel like my game definitely helps Deandre Ayton in a major way just for the veteran leadership alone,” McGee said. “Also when he gets into foul trouble and having that veteran big to come in that’s 7 foot, block shots, defend, rebound and does all the intangibles that a real big man does.”
McGee has played alongside some elite teammates during his 13-year NBA career, including Stephen Curry and LeBron James. Now he’s looking forward to teaming up with Chris Paul, who transformed Phoenix into a title contender last season.
“Every big man that has ever played with Chris Paul has done well,” McGee said. “I just feel like Chris Paul is definitely the head of the snake and he’s definitely going to lead us to the finals again.”
There’s more from the Pacific Division:
- Jonathan Kuminga will need to be versatile to see significant playing time as a rookie, Warriors assistant Kris Weems tells Grant Liffman of NBC Sports. Golden State experimented with Kuminga as a small-ball center during Summer League to see how well he could defend post players. “When you are going to draft a kid that size, and knowing that long term he is going to be bigger and stronger, he may grow a couple inches taller, his versatility because of his size gives him a chance to stay on the floor longer,” Weems said.
- Marc Gasol came close to signing with the Warriors last summer and could emerge as an option later this season, according to Anthony Slater of The Athletic. Gasol has returned to Spain after being waived by the Grizzlies, but Slater notes that he’s the type of passing big man who performs well in Steve Kerr’s system and he could be tempted to return around midseason if Golden State is in the title hunt. The Warriors still have their taxpayer mid-level exception available, although using it would result in a significant increase in their luxury tax bill.
- Darren Collison worked out for the Warriors earlier this month and remains an option for the 15th roster spot, but there’s speculation that he’s hoping for a training camp invitation from the Lakers, Slater adds in the same piece.
Kuminga can only defend 1 through 4
Currently 6’8” and 225 pounds
Quicker than 18 years old LeBron
Wiseman defend 5, may be traded?
Wiseman won’t be traded. There have been plenty of great centers that were 6’8″. Besides, Kuminga could still grow a couple of inches.
Chuck Hayes was a 6’5” Center
Most centers would rip Kuminga to shreds. Think Steven adams, Poetl, Gobert, Towns, Ayton, Vucevic, Horford, Capela, Wood, lol.
Gobert?)) Clips put Reggie Jackson on him in the playoffs he couldn’t do anything. Do you guys even watch games? I feel like 90% of people here only play 2K and watch house of highlights, instead of actual games
Kuminga hasn’t played a single minute of regular season NBA basketball. And people want to trash him. Give him a couple of season. Let him learn the game.
Funny how most of these fools can’t read. It said Kuminga as a small ball center. That means against smaller centers in the league not the big centers. SMH please don’t list every tall center because many of those are slow old ones.
Hey Danny Crawford. Gobert was ALL NBA and had one of the highest player efficiency ratings in the league. He’s utterly dominant.
Do you watch games????
Danny Crawford??? What does he have to do with Jonathan Kuminga?
I was addressing my comment to the guy with a profile pic of a ref. The name Crawford was the only ref I could think of.
The only center Kuminga could match up with for the next few years would be Jordan Bell
Another wannabe internet guru. Wes Unseld is about the same size as Kuminga. He is in Hall of Fame. Size doesn’t make you a great player.
You forgot Embiid, Jokic, and Bam, ZacharyH
I think they’d utilize him in some small ball lineups, so they can showcase his ability to run the floor and his athleticism around the rim-especially his finishing. He’s a guy that has the explosiveness to dunk through 7footers.
Now that does not mean he gets 25+ minutes on Jokic, but in blowouts or end of the 1st quarter/etc, they can give him some run.
The Santa Cruz coach says he’s closer to 240 than 225 now, and they think he could get to 6’9+ within the next year or two.
Y’all gotta remember: he’s supposed to be a college freshman THIS upcoming season. 2021-22.
Guys his age would be HS seniors last year.
He’s a freak in the gym and hasn’t stopped this summer, that’s why the Santa Cruz coach puts him at closer to 240.
And y’all are too quick to forget the guys they ran at center last year. Draymond-6’6/235, JTA: 6’6/210, Paschall: 6’6/255, Looney: 6’9/220, Wiseman: 7ft/245. Kuminga is more physically developed/has more NBA-ready body than Wiseman does despite the age difference.
They don’t need him to be Xavier Tillman day 1, but I wouldn’t be shocked if that was a comp by the end of the season. I doubt he makes any All-Rookie team but if he were on a worse team, he could be a 14/8/2 guy for sure.
This dubs team does well with above average athletic bigs. Even Wiseman had 13ppg last year. Chriss is a 6’9/240 guy, but Kuminga is much stronger/has more muscle in his frame.
He’s a ways from being a rotation regular, but I definitely expect something similar to the role Jordan Bell(6’8/218-C/PF) had his first two seasons: run the floor, showcase athleticism around the rim by finishing strong, fighting for rebounds, and the occasional block.
Reports had Kuminga closer to 6’8/240 during/after summer league, and they say he’s been in the gym too. As a guy who would be starting his Freshman season in College THIS upcoming season, they think he might still be growing too. There’s a chance Kuminga is closer to 6’9/6’10-245 by the 2022/23 season.
With Paschall(6’6/255), JTA(6’6/210), and Draymond(6’6/230) even his 6’8/225 listing is bigger than a lot of guys the Warriors are comfortable running out at the 5, and if the rumors of his weight gain are true, he should look similar to Memphis 2nd year player Xavier Tillman(6’8/245), who plays PF/C and defends five positions.
The latter is what they expect from Kuminga.
On offense, their expectations from him would be to 1. Run the floor, 2. Finish hard at the rim, and 3. Make the right pass, when needed. On defense, it’s similar in that they’d want him to 1. Run the floor, 2. Protect the rim(to a degree) but more so 3. Be versatile enough to be able to switch on defense.
They envision a prime Kuminga as a guy that can defend multiple positions on the defensive end.
He’s the size of a “big wing” PF/SF, and their train of thought is “if we turned a guy as athletic as Wiggins into a good defender at 26, and a guy that’s 6’6/230(Dray) into a DPoY candidate imagine what we can do with a 6’8/230-240 kid that we get our hands on at 18 years old?”
They don’t expect him to be good this year. They learned throwing him into the fire last year was bad with Wiseman. However Kuminga is already better than Jordan Bell(6’8/218) and has more athleticism than Kevon Looney(6’9/220) or Smailagic(6’9/220) so their train of thought is that in blowouts that he can run out there and use his athleticism to keep him in games as he learns the nuance and feel aspect that you can only learn via playing in games.
He’s a body they didn’t have last year and a body type they haven’t had for years. In an NBA that has smaller guys playing the 5, he has a very solid case of being a depth option at the position-using his athleticism and explosiveness to play with bigger guys(as he showed in the G-league/Summer league).
They don’t expect him to be Draymond, but if he had any glimpse of what Xavier Tillman was last year, he’d be a wild success. He’s a guy for the post-Curry era, and I think they might be higher on his ceiling than they are on Wiseman’s, but that has to do with him being where he’s at and two years younger than Wiseman.
But yea, their G-league coach said Kuminga is closer to 240-230 than he than 225.
Draymond Green is a heck of a screen setter AND statistically the best player in the NBA when it comes to defending Anthony Davis, while being 6’6(and coaches say he’s closer to 6’5 than 6’6) and probably 230-240.
I think a guy that’s 2.5 inches taller than him and in WAY better shape could also defend some guys that are bigger than him.
Doesn’t have to do it for 35mpg, but if he does it for 2 or 3 minutes here and there, that’s already 8-12 minutes a game, which might be what he ends up getting this season.
Kuminga projects as a guy that can and should be able to defend some SG’s, SF’s/PF’s and some C’s. Especially by the time he’s 21-22.
I think he could easily be a 15pt/8reb/3ast guy by his 3rd season(heck maybe 2nd. As far as we know he could be Rookie of the Year. Probably not, but stranger things happen all the time.
I’d think Moody probably makes an All-Rookie team in his best case scenario, but he might be a 2nd team all rookie even if he’s just so-so. He’s a guy who has a floor of “Damion Lee with plus defense”. Damion Lee is a 38% 3pt shooter who was a 12/5/2 his lone 30mpg season. I’d say if we got 14/6/3 out of Moody per/36 minutes, I’d be happy with it. And if he was a 13ppg guy with plus defense and a 36-40% 3pt shot, that’d help GSW. I think he’s sneaky athletic, and has a super long wingspan that can really help him if he wants to excel on defense. He had the predraft picture of standing in a doorway with one hand on the top of the doorframe and the other on the floor. He’s like 6’6 w/a 7’1+ wingspan.
Wiseman should be given the benefit of the doubt too, as he had a stretch right before his injury where he was 17.6/6.5/2 shooting over 65% from the field, 50% from 3 and 68% on FT’s. I doubt he does that this season, but if he can be a solid bucket getter on the second unit, maybe a Jordan Poole/Wiseman version of LouWill/Trezz bs backup centers, we could go pretty far.
JP and Wiseman are 6’4+7ft compared to Lou(6’1) and Ttezz(6’7) so they do have the upside of improving on defense as well, given their age and Warriors focus on development. Atkinson turned DLo from LA castoff into All Star♂️ Milojevic turned Boban into foreign league castoff into NBA rotation big, and Jokic from tall plumber to NBA’s league MVP.
Milojevic is best at figuring out what guys do well, and making that an elite skill. I think he gets to spend time with the Dubs’ largest position group: guys that will end up playing center at one point or another.
This group contains Bjelicia, Draymond, Looney, JTA, Wiseman, and yes, even Kuminga. Their success w/small ball when Wiseman+Looney were out give them confidence and they’ll probably run a lot of small ball this year, but with the ability to utilize a 7ft athletic freak, a 6’10 stretch big, and a 6’8 athletic freak opposed to just Dray+JTA+Paschall: 6’6 guys that aren’t wings.
So yea, especially after seeing how Kuminga bullied guys in the G-League/Summer league that were 6’10-7ft and 250+, I think he’d do JUST FINE playing the 5 from time to time against most bigs. Now I don’t think they’ll have him spend 25+ minutes on Jokic the first month, but they will utilize him there in small ball lineups to showcase his athleticism+ability to finish around the rim.
Guy is from Uranus. Kuminga is a 3 and will always be a three. He should start for Warriors at the 3. Warriors lucked out getting him. Still young and better at D than O right now. But is capable of helping team now. Wiggins can start at the 2 till Klay gets going. Kuminga is a future star. Can play either wing. But is best as a three. He never played Center in SL. Atleast not the gms I watched.
So Knickerbocker Al believes that the Warriors should get rid half the Warriors roster. Why is he criticizing the Warriors? His team is pathetic. Your team is a disaster.
Not what he is saying. He means Kuminga is the better replacement for Oubre. I agree Kuminga will be what Oubre was if Oubre had the drive to give his 100% all game long. Kuminga can stretch the floor for the shooters Curry and Klay. He is the guy to drive inside that the warriors has lacked.
First for the other genius. I never liked Obrue on Warriors. Cause he is more the same as Wiggins.
For you Howie. When did I ever say they should get rid of half the team. Lying only shows your ineptitude. I’m one of few guys here. Who has always believed with a few moves. Warriors are right back in it. I’m the biggest Wiseman n Kuminga guy on this board. Since before they were drafted. If you want my attention. At least try to have a real argument. Not just rants. I’ve forgotten more ball than you’ll ever know lol.
He didn’t criticize the Warriors whatsoever. In fact, he was really complimenting one of their more “questionable” draft picks.
I, too, love me some Kuminga. However, I think his best role is that of an athletic 3, smaller 4. He can guard multiple spots on the floor, and Kerr, Curry, Klay, and Draymond will definitely mentor him into getting the most out of his God given talents.
His offensive game will come, and his shot should become more consistent as he works with their coaches/assistants. In the meantime, Kuminga can be a very valuable forward that can help out the Warriors on both ends, especially defensively. He can take some of the pressure off of Klay, so Klay won’t have to guard the opposing teams best 2/3..
This was an excellent pickup by the Warriors, and I think time will only make this pick look even better
Bro. This is a Dubs team that had success running Draymond(6’6/230), JTA(6’6/210), and even Paschall(6’6/255) at the 5. Looney(6’9/220) is nowhere near the shear mass of muscle Kuminga is. The Dubs literally drafted a 6’8/218 center a few years ago-Jordan Bell, and Kuminga is far more athletic and far stronger than he was.
Kuminga was supposed to be a HOGH SCHOOL SENIOR last year! The Santa Cruz coaches have said more than once he’s closer to 240 than he is 220. Bro is huge and finished on guys WAY bigger in the g-league+summer league(7fters/260lb guys). His shear athleticism and explosiveness is more than enough to throw him at the five for a few minutes here and there.
Think Memphis’ Xavier Tillman. 6’8/245-C/PF. Charlotte’s PJ Washington is a very effective young center at 6’7/230. Julius Randle is 6’9/250 and would be a center on GSW. This is hilarious. The Thunder have used a 6’8/230 Isaiah Roby at center and he played the best basketball in his young career. Centers today need to be able to guard multiple Positions. Guys that are 6’8/230-240, can guard a SG or a slower 7fter, because they’re superior athletes. Zion is 6’7 and he’s best as a small ball center. Houston used Russ at the 5. The Clippers beat Utah by using Batum at the 5 and running the DPoY off the court. This is NOT 2004 or 1995 or whatever year y’all think it is. The dubs literally murdered the league in 2015/16 with their “death lineup” consisting of a 6’3 guy, three 6’6 guys and a 6’8 Harrison Barnes playing the 3/4, and literally switching responsibilities depending on where the offensive player moved.
The NBA is heading towards versatility over locked positions. If your 7ft Gonert can’t switch onto a 6’7 wing or a 6’3 guard, good teams will exploit that, as such has happened EVERY season the Jazz get into the playoffs.
It’s just silly to hear people say a 6’8/240lb 18yo shouldn’t be utilized at the 5 from time to time.
Especially when the team that he’s on has consistently used guys that are 6’6 to play center and had success with it. Montrez Harrell is 6’7/245 and he’s a center. Paul Millsap is 6’7/250 and he’s been utilized as a center too. Daniel Theis is 6’8/245 and played center for the Boston Celtics. Bam is 6’9/250, one inch, ONE inch taller than Kuminga and is one of the best centers in basketball. Larry Johnson, 6’6, Leonard Robinson, 6’7, BEN WALLACE-6’7! Dave Cowens-6’8, Wes Unseld-6’7, DENNIS RODMAN-6’6!, Charles Barkley-6’5, PJ Tucker-6’5.
There’s literally TONS of guys that were smaller than Kuminga’s current 6’8/240, that were dominant or at least high caliber at the center position. It’s hilarious seeing so many think that a kid that’s taller and far more athletic than Draymond Green on the team that plays Draymond Green at the 5 regularly isn’t a guy that should ever play the 5. Kerr’s system: if you’re bigger than 6’6/210, you might be asked to play center!
Their BEST lineups are with Draymond at the 5. This is hilarious. Of course Kuminga is going to play center.
IM FAR MORE SURPRISED THEY HAVEN’T ASKED MOSES MOODY TO WORKOUT AT CENTER!
I remember Jemele Hill saying she be up in da club with Javale McGee. Can’t imagine those two clowns partying it up together
Huh? What are you talking about?
He will be a star! Just wait and see. Sooner than later! CALLING R.O.Y! BET
Totally agree!
Easy for all to see that Kuminga & Green are by far the 2 best players in this draft & will go on have great careers, can’t believe how 6 teams messed up sooo much by letting him drop to #7, oh well, they will live to regret it!
“Easy for all to see”
Bold thing to say when all they’ve played is summer league ball. Jalen Suggs will have a longer, more efficient career.
Suggs is a bust guaranteed, make no mistake about this my friend, don’t bet on him, unless you wanna part ways with your hard earned cash!
Kuminga & Green are the only 2 guaranteed stars in this draft, Mobley looks very good as well!
I would be fearful if I were the Suns’ top brass. Ayton learning something from McGee would be disastrous.
Gasol is done, why any GM would not see that is ridiculous.
Considering GSW have Wiggins, Porter and Kuminga at the 3 plus JTA and Iggy as back ups, why don’t they look more into trading Wiggins?
I’d look into 3 options:
1. Andrew Wiggins and Jordan Poole for Dillon Brooks, Kyle Anderson and Tyus Jones.
2. Andrew Wiggins, Jordan Poole and a second round pick for Kevin Love and Colin Sexton.
3. Andrew Wiggins and a protected first for Gary Harris and Terrance Ross.
1. Memphis looking to cut roster numbers this gives them two young talent for the future and now. All three players would give GSW more depth and versatility.
2. Cleveland takes back Wiggins and gets rid of KLoves awful contract. They also get Poole who helps at SG but it cost them Sexton who would be a great sixth man for the Warriors.
3. Orlando get a young 3 in Wiggins plus a first which opens up minutes in the guard spots for all their young guards. Harris replaces Thompson while he’s out and Ross gives them a sixth man bench player.
Harris for Wiggins straight up makes more sense. I don’t see Orlando giving up both for a players without picks or a player that actually makes then better.
The problem would be the extra $10 million that Wiggins is being paid.
Yeah has to work salary wise too…
Way I see it the Magic still have a bunch of players to fill the guard spots you have Suggs, Anthony, Hampton and Fultz. Plus MCW and Moore behind them
Plus the deal isn’t without picks, I said a first round pick aswell
Sounds like the GSW brass already wishes Kuminga was taller— not a good sign.
Kuminga, like Seku Doumtouya, looks impressive, but lacks the reach to finish like Giannis has.