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Dec 3, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Golden State Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins (22) battles for for a loose ball with Denver Nuggets guard Russell Westbrook (4) as guard Christian Braun (0) and forward Jonathan Kuminga (00) and guard Jamal Murray (27) look on in the fourth quarter at Ball Arena. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images

Jonathan Kuminga Sends Two-Word Message to Former NBA Top-10 Pick

Originally posted on Denver Nuggets on SI
By Liam Willerup | Last updated Aug 2, 2025 9:16 PM ET

When an NBA team makes a draft selection with a Top 10 pick, the expectation is that the player will become a starter-level or valuable role player for years to come with the franchise. While expectations fluctuate based on whether the player is selected first overall or 10th overall, the aforementioned criteria still holds.

For the Golden State Warriors, they landed a talented player in Jonathan Kuminga when they drafted him seventh overall in the 2021 NBA Draft. However, the reality appears that his future might be better off elsewhere. Linking up with another former Top 10 pick, Kuminga shared a two-word message to the former Denver Nuggets guard.

@jonathan_kuminga via Instagram

Sharing to his Instagram account, Kuminga reshared a photo of himself and ex-Denver Nuggets guard Emmanuel Mudiay with the caption, "My brodaaaaa ." Both players represent the Democratic Republic of Congo for international play.

It was reported by NBA insider Marc Stein that Kuminga would not participate in Afrobasket 2025 due to his contract situation with Golden State, but it now appears that Kuminga will participate with the DR Congo.

Jonathan Kuminga has arrived in Kinshasa and is expected to join Congo’s national team as they prepare for AfroBasket this month.

Originally absent due to his NBA contract negotiations, he will be a huge addition to a balanced DRC team that went 5-1 in qualifiers.
— Ngijol Songolo (@5ongolo) August 1, 2025

Emmanuel Mudiay's NBA Career

Kuminga's situation with Golden State has been well documented, but there's another side to this story, that being Emmanuel Mudiay. A former seventh overall pick as well, Mudiay was an extremely hyped up prospect coming out of high school, making a shocking move by signing a one-year deal with the CBA's Guangdong Tigers and forgoing college, similar to Kuminga.

Mudiay was the number one-ranked player in the country per 247 Sports, forgoing offers from schools like SMU (where he signed originally), Arizona, Kansas, Kentucky, and many more. He had solid numbers in the CBA, but surely could've been a Top 5 pick had he gone the college route. He was the second guard off the board behind D'Angelo Russell, as he would head to Denver.

In his rookie season with Denver in 2015-16, he'd go on to average 12.8 points and 5.5 assists, starting in 66 of 68 appearances. The efficiency wasn't great, but there was still promise that the young guard could be something. However, Denver didn't see it that way, drafting his replacement in Jamal Murray the following year in 2016.

Mudiay still served as the starting guard in his second season, but was taken out of the starting lineup in February. He would be traded by the Nuggets in 2018 to the New York Knicks for a package of Devin Harris and a second-round pick. Mudiay actually had a solid season in 2018-19, but phased out of the league over the next three seasons.