Dub Hub: Steve Kerr encourages Jonathan Kuminga to ‘let it fly’ on offense

Rounding up all Warriors and NBA related news for Friday, October 11th.

In today’s Dub Hub:

• Steve Kerr encourages Jonathan Kuminga and the rest of the Warriors’ offense to “let it fly” as they embrace a high-volume three-point attack.
• The Athletic’s John Hollinger lists Trayce Jackson-Davis as an off-the-radar player who can make a big impact this season.
• Klay Thompson scores 10 points in his Mavs debut vs. the Jazz.

Through two preseason games, it’s clear the Golden State Warriors are shaping a new identity for the upcoming season, prioritizing pace and volume from beyond the arc. This approach should help several players on the roster, but perhaps the most intriguing beneficiary is fourth-year forward Jonathan Kuminga.

Known for his explosiveness attacking the rim, Kuminga often finds defenders giving him space, daring him to take the open shot. In Wednesday’s preseason matchup against the Kings, he capitalized on this by confidently draining four three-pointers, tying for the second-most on the team. Head coach Steve Kerr emphasized how significant Kuminga’s development as a shooter could be for the offense, encouraging him and the rest of the team to “let it fly” when open looks present themselves.

For more on this and other news around the NBA, here is our latest news round-up for Friday, October 11th:

Warriors News:

Kerr, Warriors give Kuminga ‘green light’ to shoot 3-pointers | NBC Sports Bay Area

“That’s what I’ve been telling him,” Kerr said Thursday after practice. “We want that shot. We want him, if he’s open, to let it fly.”

This comes after three seasons in which Kuminga’s offensive game has been defined mostly by using his elite athleticism to drive toward the rim, whether in halfcourt sets or transition. He led Golden State in dunks with 138 but shot only 32.1 percent beyond the arc.

When Kerr and Kuminga met at the end of last season, the offseason directive was clear: Work on the 3-ball, tighten it, quicken it, get a natural feel for it and shoot it with confidence.

Or, as Kuminga described, last week: “Being a full, complete player.”

Why Warriors’ three new veterans have Kerr feeling familiar vibe | NBC Sports Bay Area

“De’Anthony and Kyle give us, in different ways, a little bit of what Andre and Shaun gave us: Veteran wisdom, high IQ,” Kerr told NBC Sports Bay Area on Thursday. “Buddy gives us a lot of what Klay has given us, that lightning-bolt 3-point shooting. Pin-downs. Causing chaos with the defense with off-ball movement.

“Those three guys together really fortify our team.”

Which off-the-radar players might make a big impact this NBA season? | The Athletic

A late second-round pick in 2023 who quickly blossomed, Jackson-Davis is in a much different position this year as a potential starter. He’s the best hope for a true center on the roster, so the question is whether he can play alongside Draymond Green in a lineup that might not have enough shooting. If the pairing succeeds, it would save the 6-6 Green a lot of pounding as a full-time center.

The limited data from last season suggests it might work; the Warriors were plus-10.6 points per 100 in their 226 shared minutes together, with a 99.2 defensive rating. Those minutes weren’t coming against starters, however, and come in the framework of a Warriors roster that might have more offensive questions than in years past. Can a TJD-Green pairing score enough to function?

Tim Kawakami explains why he left The Athletic for The San Francisco Standard | Awful Announcing

Is the Warriors’ dynasty over?

“It might have been over a little while ago. We’ll see. But every time I’m ready to get anywhere near that, I see Steph Curry do something like we saw in the Olympics. If you’ve got Steph Curry and you have a decent roster around him, (you have a chance). The ’22 team was not loaded. That’s not that long ago. The open secret is that they’re probably better without Klay (Thompson). They’ll never be able to replace who he is. Even last year, he could still shoot the ball, but he was not what they needed. He couldn’t defend the way he used to defend. Not that after all those injuries.”

Andrew Wiggins out for Friday’s game and doubtful to play on Sunday

NBA News:

Klay Thompson says Mavericks preseason debut was most nervous he’s been since NBA Finals in 2015 | CBS Sports

Thompson finished the game with 10 points and three rebounds on 3 of 9 from the field, including 3 of 5 from deep in 18 minutes of action. In the first quarter, Thompson missed all three of his shot attempts, and after the game, he admitted that there were some definite nerves going on.

“I haven’t been that nervous, I don’t think, since the 2015 Finals Game 1,” Thompson said. “It felt so good just to go out there and play and work those jitters out. It was a new experience, and it’s a natural feeling when you’ve been somewhere so long and to be somewhere new in a new environment. To finally put the uniform on, it felt amazing.”

All the little moves the Knicks made to get Karl-Anthony Towns to New York | ESPN

Acquiring Towns was a blockbuster. What the Knicks did to actually make it happen was a saga.

That’s where the $300,000 comes in. That is how much space the Knicks will have below the unbreakable barrier known as the “second apron” once they fill out their roster at the end of the preseason, league sources told ESPN (because they aggregated salaries in the trades to acquire Towns and Mikal Bridges, they are not allowed to exceed the second apron at any point this season). This is roughly 0.2% of their $189 million payroll this season, by NBA contract standards a rounding figure. But what a dance to get there.

Three-time NBA champion Danny Green is retiring per ESPN’s Shams Charania

In case you missed it at Golden State of Mind:

Valkyries hire Natalie Nakase as first head coach

The 44-year-old Nakase spent 10 years coaching in the NBA before joining head coach Becky Hammon’s staff with the Las Vegas Aces before the 2022 WNBA season. That September, she became the first Asian-American coach to win a WNBA title, and in 2023 Nakase and the Aces won it all again.

A tweet to end the week:

Follow @unstoppablebaby on Twitter for all the latest news on the Golden State Warriors.