Steve Kerr breaks his silence on alleged insults that hurt Jonathan Cummings

Although Jonathan Cumminga‘s mandate with Golden State Warriors ended at the trade deadline, reports of dissatisfaction with the veteran organization, including head coach Steve Kerr, persist. After months of rumours, Atlanta Hawks for Kristaps Porzingis before last week’s deadline.

Kerr claims he always has been transparent with the press and his playersincluding Cummings, he said, according to ESPN’s Anthony Slater.

“I don’t sugar coat (my messages),” Kerr told ESPN. “I’m honest with the media. I’m honest with the players, and sometimes you have to tell the players something they don’t want to hear. I think in general it’s a healthy way to train. I think it can be very difficult for a young player to navigate. I’m sure I’ve said a few things that hurt him, but I don’t know if I’d ever be called on anything like that.”

One day, in the middle of a DNP streak in late December, Kuminga reportedly prepared for a trade that would take more than six weeks to materialize.

“Kuminga started putting things together at his house on the bay, sources close to him said, anticipating the trade and basically trying to will it into existence,” Slater reported.

“He showed up when needed and cheered on teammates at games, but he had his skills coach, Ant Wells, in town to do one-on-one workouts at various gyms away from the facility, growing in disgust with Warriors management and coaches as he worked through drills to improve his scoring and play in front of them.”

“He hates working in this place,” one source said, gesturing down toward the practice court.

While Kerr envisioned Cummings as a versatile, athletic player who could run the floor, dunk, rebound and defend at a high level, Jonathan felt he deserved a more prominent role with the Warriors.

“Neither happened to his liking, sources said, which only reinforced his belief that Kerr and general manager Mike Dunleavy would only ever view him as a fast-running, jumping athlete without the skill set to be a leadoff option,” Slater added.

Kuminga told ESPN that he envisions himself as a future multi-selection All-Star.

Jonathan Cumminga left the Warriors meeting because of Steve Kerr

For many, the former The Warriors are set to meet Jonathan Cuminga with Steve Kerr brought to an end his time with the only NBA team he ever played for. A meeting in December ended in frustration as tempers boiled over between Kerr and Kuminga, as reported by ESPN’s Anthony Slater.

“Anger seethed in Kerr’s office that afternoon. The discussion went from the small picture to the bigger picture. Frustrations surfaced on both sides – Kerr expressing his displeasure with Kuminga’s lack of participation and competitiveness toward team goals, and Kuminga voicing his hurt at Kerr’s belief in him as a long-time missing ES player.”

Slater also noted that “the meeting ended, sources familiar with the exchange said, with Kerr pounding his whiteboard in frustration.

Kuminga, with a bruised left knee, is yet to make his debut for the Hawks.