"What do you see?": Asking Jonathan Kuminga this question may be the key to unlocking his potential

Why a question asked of Andre Iguodala years ago should also be asked of his successor.

Andre Iguodala may never have become the kind of player the Golden State Warriors needed him to be if Andre Miller never asked him one crucial question.

What do you see?

When Iguodala and podcast partner Evan Turner guested on JJ Reddick’s The Old Man and the Three podcast, Iguodala credited Miller as the one who helped him unlock aspects of his game that brought him to new heights. When asked by Redick who he thought was the smartest player he ever played with, Iguodala immediately had an answer in mind.

“Andre Miller taught me so much,” Iguodala said. “Like, he was so soft spoken, didn’t say much. On the court he would always ask me, ‘What do you see?’ And I’m like, year three, four, so I see things, but not on his level or not like to the level I see things now. Back then I’m still learning, and I can’t answer this question… But the more he asked me, the more I would go back and watch film, like I’m gonna have an answer for him every time he asks me, ‘What do I see?’”

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Miller’s approach to educating Iguodala is thought provoking and highly constructive. It engenders a method to improve oneself through self-examination and self-improvement over an approach of direct and blunt instruction, which may come off at times as bossy and condescending.

It encouraged Iguodala to look at film and examine all the nitty-gritty details that went into each possession. He referred to a specific half-court set — “Floppy” — as an example.

“I remember Floppy,” Iguodala added. “Me and Willie Green would get like four or five easy buckets every night. Like, I knew I would get six points a night off Floppy… We just come together under the basket and the defenses always turn their head or like guarding you to push force you. One day you stand under the basket and the ball just ‘boom’ and you just get layups. And then we start practicing and practicing in practice, and now we get my finishes to just be like, boom or boom. And I was like, ‘Why haven’t I ever seen this before?’”

Before we dive deep into what Iguodala meant, it’s prudent to explain what “Floppy” is. Among coaching circles, “Floppy” is a relatively common set that’s been around for several years. If a team has one or two above-average movement shooters on their roster, “Floppy” is almost always a mandatory half-court set to include in their playbook.

“Floppy”

The movement shooter in question (2 in the diagram above) starts underneath the basket and has two choices: either run off staggered screens (set by the 3 and the 5) or run off a single down screen (set by the 4). If he chooses the former, the first screener in the staggered setup then runs off the single down screen after the initial shooter moves past him.

(Alternatively, 2 can run off the single down screen set by 4, while 3 can choose to turn around and run off the single down screen set by 5. The 1 will then have two movement-shooting options to choose from.)

Iguodala’s grand realization — him saying, “Why haven’t I seen this before?” — is that by doing the blue-collar work in “Floppy,” he would find himself readily available underneath the basket for a wide-open layup or dunk. Setting screens for shooters, making contact with his teammates underneath, and sowing confusion within a defense — all of these made Iguodala “see” a side of basketball that was once hidden from him, and a side that remains hidden from a non-insignificant number of players in the modern NBA.

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As you may have deduced, the Warriors include “Floppy” in their playbook by virtue of having two of the greatest shooters of all time in Stephen Curry and Klay Thompson.

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Defenses nowadays have come to expect Curry and/or Thompson flying around one or several down screens and have enacted a plethora of countermeasures to take their space away — whether through switching, jumping out with two defenders, or “top-locking” to insert themselves between the shooter and the screen, thus forcing them away from the intended action.

Iguodala — using what he learned from Miller, who was his teammate during his time with the Philadelphia 76ers and Denver Nuggets — came in with the institutional knowledge of how to best unlock the Warriors’ offense using Curry and Thompson’s pull around “Floppy” and other similar off-ball screening actions in the half court. That involved not only himself setting screens for the Splash Brothers and cutting into space created by their gravity:

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It also gave him the wherewithal to find his teammates slipping into space after setting screens for Curry and Thompson — that is, being able to see the floor better and increasing his value as a passer and overall playmaker.

“Obviously for Steph and Klay, the big is going to be open all day,” Iguodala said. “I told you I was watching my YouTube clips. Like I was (finding) (Andrew) Bogut on the lob, or Draymond (Green) on the slip side. And so, they were trying to figure out where do I get it from — I got all that from Andre Miller.”

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The knowledge Iguodala obtained from Miller was definitely paid forward to younger players that have come under Iguodala’s tutelage — Jonathan Kuminga included.

After a promising rookie season capped off by a championship, Kuminga had his ups and downs during his sophomore year. Only during Andrew Wiggins’ absence did Kuminga re-flash potential — but by the time Wiggins returned during the playoffs, Kuminga played sparingly and was mostly relegated to the bench by Steve Kerr due to an extremely short leash.

Entering his third season, Kuminga should be entering the phase where Iguodala started to “see,” but not as much as someone who had spent several years in the league like him and Miller before him. This begs the question: Has Iguodala fully imparted that kind of wisdom to his apprentice? If so, has Kuminga used those nuggets of knowledge to not only replicate his mentor’s skill sets — but improve on them?

The base Kuminga possesses is arguably equal — if not higher — than that of Iguodala’s. A 6-foot-8 wing with a 6-foot-11 wingspan screams physical talent, coupled with pogo-stick athleticism that gifts him above-the-rim capabilities. There’s no question he takes care of his body and makes sure it’s in tip-top shape.

But physical talent can only take one so far. The floor it provides is higher, but it also hits the proverbial wall much quicker. Only by developing the mind and senses will someone like Kuminga be able to smash through and reach the high ceiling that most expect him to arrive at. This is where starting to “see” things will pay dividends for him.

The problem lies in the fact that there’s no catch-all metric to measure a player’s level of “sight.” It’s very much an intangible asset that has mostly tangible eye-test process and results. But no number can truly capture how wide one’s basketball eyes have opened.

We’re forced to resort to metrics such as total cuts and points per cut, even if those don’t provide the full picture of one’s “sight” level. Per Synergy, Kuminga’s first two seasons as a cutter have been quite decent:

• 2021-2022: 80 cuts, 1.350 points per cut (54th out of 120 players who tallied a minimum of 50 cuts)

• 2022-2023: 96 cuts, 1.417 points per cut (35th out of 134 players who tallied a minimum 50 cuts)

Most of Kuminga’s cuts are of the “indirect” variety — starting from the weak-side wing or corner, cutting along the baseline or from a 45-degree angle from the wing or slot, and slashing into space generated by an advantage created in the paint. Others are face cuts (otherwise known as “blade” or “Maggette” cuts) that start from the corner and end up with Kuminga getting the ball in the paint and smashing through a crowd of defenders.

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Some of the more eye-popping cuts are the ones Kuminga finishes after an advantage is created at the point of attack, where two defenders attach themselves to Curry or Thompson. This has been a classical method of offense by the Warriors, and it was often Iguodala who finished possessions by dunking lobs from Draymond Green short-roll possessions.

Kuminga is getting the hang of being Iguodala’s play-finishing heir apparent:

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But only a few were of the kind that Iguodala talked about with Redick — i.e., slips into space after setting screens for shooters such as Curry and Thompson. This is where the importance of screen setting comes in: the more willing Kuminga is to do the blue-collar work off the ball, the more he’ll find himself with an open lane to the rim or find himself directly underneath the rim.

And the faster he’ll reach his own personal eureka moment:

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The faster Kuminga gets the hang of cutting into space, the more he’ll see teammates do the same whenever he has the ball in his hands and the decision-making responsibilities fall upon his shoulders:

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There are inherent mitigating factors that could hamper Kuminga’s ability to prove that he can “see.” The bulk of the ball-handling responsibilities was shared last season between Curry and Green — understandable, given that they collectively compose the engine of the offense. With Chris Paul’s addition, Kuminga’s chances of getting early shot-clock touches most likely dwindle further, which means he’ll have to do a better job of finding ways to contribute on the margins.

Another factor is Kerr’s belief level in Kuminga, whose lack of effort on the boards and difficulty coexisting in a half-court setting with another non-shooter on the floor limited his playoff minutes. This creates a dilemma of sorts: Kuminga’s reputation as a non-spacer — despite shooting 37.0% on threes last season, albeit on low volume — will make pairing him with a vital non-shooting big such as Green and Looney difficult; on the other hand, not putting him on the court won’t give him the reps and opportunities to prove that his floor game has evolved.

If Kerr is to be believed, however, he’s quite bullish about Kuminga getting more meaningful rotation stints this upcoming season.

“I’m excited about JK,” Kerr said during his media availability last Monday. “He’s had a really good summer. I was getting reports routinely when I was overseas and the coaches were all raving about him, saying that he’s really worked hard and understood what’s needed from him. I think it’ll be very helpful for him to play with Chris Paul. Chris has a way of making the game easier for people. I anticipate them spending some time on the court together and Chris helping to unlock some of that potential. Otherwise, JK’s in his third year and getting better and working hard. He’s right on track to get where he needs to go, so I’m excited.”

Kerr emphasizing Kuminga’s pairing with Paul sounds a whole lot like he’ll be featuring the two in second-unit lineups, possibly with Kuminga at the 4 and a floor-spacing big such as Dario Šarić as his frontcourt partner. That will give Kuminga simplified responsibilities: be a screener and dive man for Paul in ball-screen sets; and create chaos off of the spacing created by Šarić and other shooters such as Moses Moody, Thompson, and Wiggins.

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Iguodala’s role is unclear next season, but he’ll most likely be retired and/or serve a backstage advisory role with the Warriors. He won’t be on the court to ask Kuminga the question, but someone like Paul could very well take the role that Miller played for Iguodala.

If and when Paul or another seasoned veteran asks Kuminga: What do you see?

Kuminga might have the answers primed and ready for everyone to witness this upcoming season.