Jonathan Kuminga's name stayed in the headlines for most of the offseason.
The Golden State Warriors' talented 23-year old forward was a restricted free agent, and he couldn't get a contract.
In past iterations of NBA offseasons, RFAs would get big offer sheets from another team that forced their former team to either match or let them go.
But with cap space at a premium this offseason, that didn't happen. No one else offered Kuminga, and he found himself in a staring contest with the Warriors.
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In the end, Kuminga got a two-year deal worth about $23 million per year.
But really, that was the easy part.
Now, Kuminga has to prove himself, again, to get onto the court.
The Warriors didn't use Kuminga much in the latter stages of last season. Once they traded for Jimmy Butler, Golden State's floor spacing didn't feel right to head coach Steve Kerr when he played Kuminga with the likes of Butler and Draymond Green.
By the playoffs, that meant Kuminga was even getting a couple of DNP-coach's decisions.
But then all of a sudden, Butler and then Curry were hurt. Kuminga had to play big minutes and take a lot of shots.
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He delivered multiple impressive playoff performances with the stars out, but to start the new season, Golden State is healthy.
And that means Kuminga might not even have a spot to play in consistently early on, despite the new contract.
This is the hard part. Kuminga has to prove to the Warriors, or to a potential trade partner, that he's worth the price of admission.
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