Video: Warriors’ Steve Kerr Responds to Kuminga, Moody’s Reported Unhappiness

Lachlan Cunningham/Getty ImagesGolden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr was apparently not impressed by reports that forward Jonathan Kuminga and guard Moses Moody are unhappy with their playing time.

“I played 15 years and all 15 I was frustrated with my playing time,” Kerr said Friday, per The Athletic’s Anthony Slater.

That doesn’t mean Kerr won’t consider making changes to the Warriors rotation going forward.

Kerr met with Kuminga to talk about frustration over his playing time Thursday, according to the San Francisco Chronicle’s Ron Kroichick.

Kerr told reporters he wished the discontent had remained in-house, per Anthony V. Slater of The Athletic:

Anthony Slater @anthonyVslaterHere’s a more extended soundbite from Steve Kerr on Jonathan Kuminga. Said he spoke with Kuminga today and wished any displeasure remained in-house.

“You have an issue, I’m here. I’m the most accessible coach in the league probably. My door is always open.” pic.twitter.com/nVYW76b7HB

Kuminga was benched for the entire fourth quarter of the Warriors’ 130-127 loss to the Denver Nuggets.

After the game, Kerr said he looked at the box score and thought that he “needs to get Kuminga on the court more,” according to Kroichick.

Charania and Slater wrote Kuminga “has lost faith in coach Steve Kerr,” while Dumas said Moody, who has not played for three straight games, is “frustrated with the lack of having a role and the lack of consistency.”

Kerr was not happy with the existence of the reports.

“Those things are better discussed behind the scenes,” Kerr said. “Any time something like that goes public, it creates a distraction.”

“I talked to our whole team about this. Got an issue? I’m here. I am the most accessible coach in the league, probably. My door is always open. I have players all the time come talk to me, and I encourage it.”

After Thursday’s loss, which the Warriors dropped despite at one point holding an 18-point lead, Kerr stuck by his decision to play Andrew Wiggins over Kuminga down the stretch.

When speaking to media Friday, Kerr again backed that choice.

“JK is a young player who’s growing, he’s getting better, that’s why he’s been in the starting lineup,” Kerr said. “He will continue to grow. This is all part of his growth.”

Kerr went on to say that the Warriors, a team struggling with blown leads, will continue experimenting with the lineups they put out on the court to close out games.

“At this point, our closing lineups have been different, often, night after night,” Kerr said. “So we haven’t been able to find that one five-man group that we’re just automatically going to go to, and that makes it tricky. Tricky for the players and tricky for the staff, too.”

The Warriors take on the Detroit Pistons at 10 p.m. Friday night.