James Wiseman had a turbulent rookie season with the Warriors.
The No. 2 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft was thrown in the deep end right away and struggled to find his footing. Injuries and COVID protocols seemed to set Wiseman back every time he was on the upswing, and his season ended early due to a meniscus injury that required surgery.
After going through the trials and tribulations of his first NBA season, Wiseman had some wisdom to impart onto Warriors rookie Jonathan Kuminga as the forward prepares to begin his professional career.
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"One thing he told me was to just come out here, work hard, listen," Kuminga told reporters at Warriors Media Day. "There is going to be some hard moments and there is going to be some good moments, but throughout all that you have to stay on your grind and stay focused."
The Warriors drafted Kuminga with the No. 7 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft and view him, along with Wiseman and Moses Moody, as the pillars that the post-Steph Curry era will be built on.
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Kuminga, 18, has his locker situated right next to Andre Iguodala and has been quick to soak up knowledge from the 2015 NBA Finals MVP.
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How Kuminga comes along will determine what his role on this year's team will be, but he has a clear edict from Steve Kerr as training camp begins.
"Just coming out here, compete at a high level, play hard and just trust the process," Kuminga said.
The Warriors were forced to take the training wheels off Wiseman to start the season last year. With a deeper roster this season, the Warriors will be able to ease Kuminga and Moody into NBA action, ideally making their transition to the pros more seamless than the turbulent year Wiseman traversed.