Alright, so folks have been talking about Kuminga’s last 10 games. It’s always like that with young players, right? Everyone’s trying to see the future, predict the breakout. I get it. I’m a sucker for that stuff too.
So, I decided to do my own little deep dive. My own “practice,” if you will, of tracking him through that stretch. Not just looking at the final box score an hour after the game. Nah, I mean really paying attention, trying to see what’s what beyond the basic numbers.
My process was pretty old school. No fancy analytics software or anything. Just me, the games (some live, some on replay, coffee definitely involved), and a trusty notepad. I wanted to see the flow, the little things.
What I was jotting down in my little “record book” for each game went something like this:
- Obvious stuff: Points, rebounds, assists, turnovers, fouls.
- Shooting: Where were the shots coming from? Was he forcing it? Good looks?
- Defensive effort: Was he engaged? Making rotations? Getting beat?
- Hustle plays: Diving for loose balls, extra effort on the glass, that kind of thing.
- Decision-making: Good passes versus risky ones, understanding the game situation.
- And, yeah, I even had a column for “Wow moments” and “Hmm moments.” Very scientific, I know.
And what did I find across those 10 games? Well, it was a journey, let me tell you. Some nights, you’d see that incredible potential, the athleticism, a couple of plays that make you jump out of your seat. Then, the next game, maybe it’s a bit quieter, a few more mistakes, looking a bit lost. It was a real mixed bag. Consistency, as you’d expect with a young guy, was the main thing that was… well, developing.
Now, why did I go to all this trouble? It wasn’t for a fantasy league, not really. It started because of a conversation with my brother-in-law, Mark. Mark’s one of those guys who’s super critical of young talent, always saying they’re coddled or don’t have the fundamentals. He was going on about Kuminga needing “way more time” and how everyone overhypes flashes.
So, I said, “Alright, Mark, I’m gonna properly track his next 10. We’ll see.” I think I just wanted to have some solid ground to stand on next time we had that debate over Sunday dinner. My wife, bless her heart, saw me hunched over my notes one evening, with arrows and little plus and minus signs. She asked if I was planning a heist or something. I just mumbled, “It’s for Kuminga… and Mark.”
The thing is, after those 10 games, meticulously recorded, the “data” didn’t give me a knockout punch for Mark. It basically showed… a young player developing. Some good, some not-so-good. Mark just kind of nodded when I showed him my notes and said, “See? Ups and downs. Like I said.” He wasn’t wrong. But I wasn’t entirely wrong either about the flashes of brilliance.
What I really took away from that whole exercise was something else. This whole practice of intense tracking, it was more about me trying to prove a point, or trying to fast-forward a player’s development in my own head. It’s easy to get lost in the weeds of every single possession when you’re that focused. You start to expect perfection or a straight line of improvement, and that’s just not how it works, especially not in the big leagues.
So yeah, Kuminga’s last 10 games? For me, it was a good reminder to zoom out a bit. The kid’s got talent, no doubt. But growth isn’t always a neat and tidy graph you can plot in a notebook. Sometimes, the most valuable part of these little “practices” is what you learn about your own perspective. And maybe to not make bets, even unspoken ones, with your brother-in-law.
