https://www.sfchronicle.com/sports/jenkins/article/Warriors-Jonathan-Kuminga-is-rising-so-why-16834609.php

The NBA’s All-Star weekend kicks off with the Rising Stars event Feb. 18, and if anyone in the league fits that bill, it’s the Warriors’ Jonathan Kuminga. For those catching their first glimpses as he mixes ferocious dunks with polished inside moves, a well-practiced left hand and a surprisingly smooth shooting touch, the first reaction might be, “Who is that?”

What a shame he won’t be there.

There were 12 rookies chosen, along with 12 second-year players and four notables from the NBA G League Ignite in a format presenting four seven-man teams and two rounds leading to a championship game. From that pool, the four coaches — Rick Barry, Isiah Thomas, Gary Payton and James Worthy — drafted their rosters.

Viewing it from Kuminga’s perspective, a rundown of the competition:

No-doubt Rookie of the Year candidates: Evan Mobley, Cade Cunningham, Scottie Barnes and Josh Giddey.

The Warriors don’t need convincing: New Orleans’ 6-foot-8 center Herb Jones, who racked up 13 points, six rebounds and five steals against them early last month, and Sacramento guard Davion Mitchell, a fierce defender who is coming on strong (season-high 26 points on 11-for-17 shooting at Chase Center on Thursday night.)

Gaining considerable notice on terrible teams: Houston’s Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun, Orlando’s Jalen Suggs and Franz Wagner, and Indiana’s Chris Duarte.

That leaves Chicago’s Ayo Dosunmu — like Kuminga, a dynamic presence on an NBA winner, and getting more playing time (24.3 minutes per game to Kuminga’s 12.8).

It’s a group without ringers, but I’d love to see some votes from coaches, scouts and talent evaluators who have watched Kuminga’s recent performances. There are times when he looks his age (19) and he clearly has much to learn. But his ascent has been stunning, not to mention can’t-miss viewing, to the point where James Wiseman’s return — still a nebulous matter of conjecture — is fading from the list of Golden State’s primary concerns.

Perhaps there’s some hope. The way NBA players get injured (the list is alarming), Kuminga might still get an invitation. The man is rising.
Let them shine

Totally agree with local NBA maven Marc Spears (ESPN), who listed LaMelo Ball and Anthony Edwards as the most glaring omissions from the All-Star reserves. Above all, this game is a show — and those two put together mind-blowing highlight packages with regularity. Maybe they slide in as injury replacements for Kevin Durant (East) and Draymond Green (West), even if the positional fits aren’t quite right. … As for the game itself, this stuffed-shirt league office just can’t get it right. Instead of having the captains choose up sides on national TV, why not do it on the court, playground style, just before tipoff?. … Huge advantage for the Warriors when they get into the playoffs: At those crucial times when they have a narrow, last-minute lead and the opposing team is forced to foul, coach Steve Kerr can put Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Jordan Poole (league-leading 92.1% on free throws) and clutch shooter Damion Lee on the court, with rookie Moses Moody an intriguing possibility. Whoever gets fouled, it’s a pretty good bet those free throws go down. … In case you missed it, typically heartfelt words from Thompson during Thursday night’s postgame: “I’m really appreciative of Andrew Wiggins, my goodness, he makes my job so much easier this year. I don’t have to (defensively) check the best player every night, so I’m very thankful for that man.” … As the league mourned the passing of Bill Fitch, the Wiggins name came up. Andrew’s father, Mitchell, was on the Fitch-coached 1986 Houston Rockets who knocked off a loaded Lakers team in the Western Conference finals. Fitch’s 1981 NBA-champion Celtics featured Larry Bird, Tiny Archibald, Cedric Maxwell and Robert Parish, with Kevin McHale and M.L. Carr among the bench players..

The Warriors have an ESPN game Wednesday night at Utah — significantly, the first major-network NBA game to be announced and directed by women.. The broadcasting crew is excellent: Beth Mowins, Doris Burke and reporter Lisa Salters. It could just as easily be (drawing from other sources) Kate Scott, Kayte Christensen-Hunter (stellar on the Sacramento Kings’ broadcast) and Malika Andrews. Not to mention Kerith Burke and Kendra Andrews (Malika’s younger sister, now covering the Warriors for ESPN) while not forgetting the venerable Jackie MacMullan and Rachel Nichols. Women have made elite-level impressions in basketball broadcasting, surely with much more to come. …The baseball talks drag on, in typically disgusting fashion, with the camps’ reporting date (Feb. 16) and even the March 31 season opener subject to delay. This is inexcusable for so many reasons. It’s anxiety time for fans who booked their flights, hotels and tickets months in advance. Unsigned free agents have no idea where they’ll be playing or living, and that’s a massive list including Kris Bryant, Freddie Freeman, Carlos Correa, Trevor Story, Anthony Rizzo and Japanese star Seiya Suzuki. Not that the warring negotiators seem to care. It’s all about hatred. Lunchtime cafeteria favorite: the Baked Resentment, served on a bed of spite. … At least fans can understand the issues and terms being discussed, because this sport (thankfully) has no salary cap. The NBA’s Collective Bargaining Agreement is a convoluted junkpile of Bird rights, Early Bird rights, the taxpayer mid-level exception, the non-taxpayer mid-level exception, and the absurd stipulation that you can’t make a trade unless the salaries match up. After falling asleep trying to digest it one night, I turned to far more interesting reading: “The History of the Isosceles Triangle.”