Beyond the obvious advantage of filling their power forward void, one of the main reasons I'm on board with the Jonathan Kuminga signing for the Minnesota Timberwolves is his fit alongside LaMelo Ball. Still, with their established talent, the Timberwolves need Kuminga to buy into a play-finisher role. This is a question mark given his typical isolation diet, but LaMelo feeding him easy shots around the rim should help Kuminga embrace this shift.
I'm far from the first person to point this out, but as athletic and physical 6-foot-7 forwards, Kuminga and Miles Bridges have clear similarities. Both players can finish around the rim, run in transition, attack mismatches, and cut off the ball. Playing alongside an elite playmaker like Ball maximizes this skill set.
Don't believe me? Bridges' true shooting percentage was 9.1 percent higher, and his 3-point percentage was 7.9 percent higher with LaMelo on the court, per Databallr.
Kuminga will quickly realize how much easier LaMelo makes things for him and, in turn, embrace becoming a high-end role player. Likewise, by playing alongside Ball, Kuminga will still put up solid numbers; it just won't be because he's creating for himself.
To be clear, we'll still see some of Kuminga's shot creation juice in a more limited capacity with the Timberwolves. Regardless, he's not talented enough to be a focal point as a creator, and his ideal role on a winning team is an athletic play-finisher, in the mold of Bridges or Aaron Gordon. Since he's on a prove-it contract and playing alongside an elite playmaker, this transition should be smoother for Kuminga. Minnesota's overall roster context should further help with this transition.
LaMelo Ball and the Timberwolves' roster will benefit Jonathan Kuminga
The Timberwolves have an established hierarchy with Anthony Edwards and Ball as the team's top two creators. Playing alongside these proven stars will force Kuminga to adapt to a complementary role.
While he's played alongside an all-time great in Stephen Curry and a clear-cut No. 2 option in Jimmy Butler, the Warriors always needed more creation alongside Curry. The Hawks lacked a clear-cut second option alongside Jalen Johnson, and Kuminga actually showed flashes of buying into a complementary role. With Ant, LaMelo, Ayo Dosunmu, and Jaden McDaniels, the Timberwolves don't have this same need.
Kuminga buying into a role is still a question mark until we officially see it, but the roster context should make things easier. One of the major factors is that Ball's playmaking will benefit Kuminga immensely.
To truly excel as a play-finisher, you need an elite passer. Yes, Curry opens up shots for his teammates with his scoring gravity, but he doesn't feed forwards open shots as a passer in the way LaMelo does. Draymond Green is an elite positional playmaker, but his hub-playmaking doesn't maximize athletic play-finishers like Kuminga. In general, Golden State's system is great for shooters, but players with Kuminga's skill set struggle to thrive because it so heavily relies on shooting and feel.
The Hawks were mostly filled with other wings. CJ McCollum ran the show as a point guard, but he's not a high-end floor general by any means.
My point being, yes, there are some red flags with Kuminga's ability to accept a scaled-down role, but context matters. Kuminga has never played in the right system and with high-end playmaking to maximize his abilities as a play-finisher. With LaMelo and Chris Finch's free-flowing offense, this should change.
We've seen LaMelo bring the best out of similar players, and as long as Kuminga accepts the role, he'll thrive with the Timberwolves. For Minnesota, having a role player who is an athletic play-finisher can open up a lot for their offense, and it's an element they previously lacked.
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