Why Kuminga wasn't eligible for the NBA's Most Improved Player Award originally aired on NBC Sports Bay Area
On Tuesday, Philadelphia 76ers star shooting guard Tyrese Maxey was named the NBA's Most Improved Player for the 2023-24 season, outscoring Chicago Bulls guard Coby White by a total of 14 points.
The award was presented to Maxey and White, with several others expected to follow. However, the name appeared to be missing when the official vote was announced. What about Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga?
Well, the 21-year-old, who took a huge leap forward in his third year, wasn't really eligible for voters to consider. Since last offseason, it's been well known that candidates for the league's major awards must play at least 65 games to qualify, making sure the big names don't miss games just to rest. Are expected. Kuminga appeared in 74 regular season games.
However, a special warning removed him from the vote.
For a game to count towards these 65 games, a player must receive at least 20 minutes of action. Kuminga checked that box his 61 times, leaving him four times short of being considered for MIP. One was 40 seconds short of 20 minutes, and the other was 27 seconds short. Kuminga played in eight games and came on with less than 20 minutes remaining.
Mr. Kuminga would undoubtedly have been near the top of the candidate list if voters had included him. Maxey is playing in his first All-Star Game this season, but he also finished sixth in voting two seasons ago and averaged 20.3 points per game last season.
Kuminga fulfilled the original intent of this award. His minutes per game increased from 20.8 hours the previous season to 26.3 hours. He started just 16 games last season, but has started 46 games this season. Kuminga was the Warriors' second leading scorer, averaging 6.2 points per game, going from 9.9 to 16.1.
As Klay Thompson moves on to the next phase of his career, Kuminga has proven himself to be a reliable scorer for the Warriors and a second option behind Stephen Curry. Kuminga has scored in double figures in 34 consecutive games and has scored 20 or more points in eight consecutive games during that span.
“JK had a really good year, definitely a breakout year,” coach Steve Kerr told reporters Thursday as part of his season-ending press conference. “I think he's gotten more and more confident in his game.”
Warriors general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. echoed that assessment later in the day.
“I think JK’s growth is really impressive,” Dunleavy said. “Honestly, I put in a lot of time this offseason, I went into the season, I had a great preseason, I started off a little slow, but I found my way and in the middle of the season I started to grow there. He's one of the best players on our team, but he's also the best in the league, and that's where we see potential in him.”
In addition to minutes played, games started, and points per game, Kuminga also led in rebounds (4.8 per game), field goal percentage (52.9 percent), free throw percentage (74.6 percent), and total steals (55). This was a single-season career high. ), total blocks (36) and some more.
It would have been interesting to see where Kuminga would land in the Most Improved Player voting, but he and the Warriors have an even bigger deal for the former top draft pick who is eligible for a contract extension this offseason. have a goal.
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