There's some reasonable concern about how Jonathan Kuminga will fit with the Minnesota Timberwolves. While I won't overreact to preseason, it's worth mentioning that Kuminga struggled immensely during Wednesday's preseason game against the Indiana Pacers.
The 6-foot-7 forward shot 1-for-9 from the field. He forced up some ill-advised shots and struggled to convert on rather easy looks around the rim and from beyond the arc. Kuminga also had some lapses off the ball on defense and even got bullied by Andrew Nembhard on one play. Panicking about one preseason game is nonsensical, and for what it's worth, the Wolves outscored Indiana in the first half when the starters played.
Still, Wednesday's preseason game shows what a bad Kuminga game looks like, and it's not pretty. Every player is bound to have an off night at some point, but Kuminga's off nights are particularly loud, and since he's inconsistent, unfortunately, games like this can be expected in the regular season.
Jonathan Kuminga's flaws were on full display on Wednesday
I've said it before, and I'll say it again: the Timberwolves need Kuminga to be an athletic play-finisher. That should be his primary role on offense. Thankfully, LaMelo Ball can maximize this part of Kuminga's game due to his playmaking.
Regardless, Kuminga has some questionable offensive tendencies. Most notably, he can hijack an offense by forcing up difficult contested shots. We saw that on Wednesday. Despite his athletic gifts, Kuminga also struggled to finish with physicality around the rim on Wednesday, which has been another issue in his career.
The Wolves can't afford to let Kuminga take away from their established talent, including Ball, Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels, and Ayo Dosunmu. Unfortunately, if he plays as he did on Wednesday, there will be games where he does take away from them.
And while Kuminga's main value will be around the rim, the Wolves will need him to knock down 3-pointers in certain situations. Even with Ball creating open looks for him, it's unclear if Kuminga can simply knock down open shots. For his career, Kuminga is a subpar 33.2 percent outside shooter, and on Wednesday he missed all of his triples. If Kuminga struggles from deep range, this would create similar problems to the Julius Randle-Rudy Gobert frontcourt.
This, paired with his tendency to force up shots, could derail Minnesota's offense. Plus, despite having all the tools to be an elite defender, Kuminga is also inconsistent on this end of the floor. Sometimes he lets his offense affect his defense. Frequent off-ball lapses are the most common problem for Kuminga, and we saw this on Wednesday.
The Wolves will need more consistency from Kuminga on both ends of the floor to maximize the success of this era.
To be clear, signing Kuminga was still the right call. Minnesota needed a power forward, signing him for $6 million this season is tremendous value, and the upside of the move is undeniable. Nevertheless, he is inherently an erratic player, and Wednesday's preseason game showed off some of his flaws. The Wolves will have to prepare themselves for some of Kuminga's inevitable off nights.
On the bright side, closing games with Dosunmu is an easy counter when Kuminga struggles. Likewise, cutting back on his minutes won't be difficult given his contract. However, Wednesday's game is a reminder of Kuminga's flaws and some of the problems it could create for the Timberwolves.
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