The Jonathan Kuminga saga has dominated Warriors and NBA discourse throughout the offseason.
But how do Golden State’s players actually feel about the situation? Third-year guard Brandin Podziemski revealed how he and his Warriors teammates view the Kuminga noise in a conversation with 95.7 The Game’s “Willard and Dibs” on Wednesday.
“Obviously, everybody on our team knows it’s the media’s job to try to nitpick and find things to write and talk about and separate teammates so they have a story to write,” Podziemski told Mark Willard and Dan Dibley. “Like, we all know that’s how it works; especially the guys who have been around it for 10 to 15 years, they know how it works.
“Everybody in the locker room knows no matter how that situation’s resolved, it doesn’t change our viewpoint of JK as a person [and] as a player. Obviously, we all want him to be in Golden State; that’s the whole point. But it doesn’t change anything.”
To no one’s surprise, Podziemski has his teammate’s back.
It is no secret that Golden State, the lone franchise that has yet to make an offseason move, likely has transactions in wait because of the Kuminga situation. But it’s also well known that Kuminga and the Warriors are at an impasse in contract negotiations.
At the end of the day, games will be played, and Podziemski will be obligated to lace up his shoes regardless of Kuminga’s status. The guard simply is focused on what he can control.
“The media is going to portray it one way to try and make people think differently of it,” Podziemski told Willard and Dibley. “But it doesn’t change my perspective. I know all I can control is being the best version of Brandin Podziemski that I can be going into my third year, and everything else is going to fall how it may.”
Podziemski said he and his Warriors teammates want Kuminga back for the 2025-26 NBA season. However, it’s uncertain how much Golden State’s front office agrees with that sentiment, if it does at all.
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