Warriors needs to let go of the past in quest for another championship

As we slowly glide toward the NBA offseason, the Golden State Warriors have a tough decision to make. 

Jonathan Kuminga is scheduled to hit restricted free agency. His inconsistent role with the franchise has raised questions regarding the viability of retaining him long-term.

The problem is that the Warriors are an aging team and Kuminga is arguably their most talented young player. Steve Kerr's willingness to risk losing Kuminga has been baffling, especially as his athleticism gives Golden State a different dimension when he's on the court.

Golden State is trying to win another championship. It wants to send Stephen Curry and Draymond Green into retirement with five championship rings. However, it runs the risk of being blinded by that goal. After all, neither Curry nor Green is the player they once were. They need youthful talent to help carry them through the grueling marathon that is an NBA season.

"[Kuminga is] the only one on that bench that’s explosive," Charles Barkley said on TNT's postgame show on May 14. "You can't go to war with three old guys against the West. He was the only guy out there where you can say, 'He can play with these Minnesota Timberwolves guys.'" 

If the Warriors want to taste success before Curry and Green bow out of the league, they've got to let go of their past. Accepting that what worked previously won't work now is the first step toward figuring things out. 

It's clear that you can't rely on Green and Curry carrying the team night in and night out. Yet that's exactly what Steve Kerr and the front office keep asking the veteran duo to do. 

Golden State can either embrace the need for young, explosive and athletic talent or it can keep falling short in the postseason. We saw how impactful Kuminga was against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Losing him, either in free agency or via sign-and-trade, would be a mistake. 

Still, Mike Dunleavy Jr. is the one calling the shots. So he must stand by his decisions. Nevertheless, the Warriors currently look like a team living on their successes of the past, and that's no way to build toward a prosperous future.