Jonathan Kuminga delivered another sensational performance for the Atlanta Hawks on Sunday. Playing in only his third game with his new team, he wowed the hometown crowd with several dazzling dunks, including a powerful windmill and a left-handed slam after switching hands in mid-air.
The latter drew the attention of the Hawks' broadcast team, who went bananas after Kuminga's highlight play.
Calling the game were Bob Rathbun and franchise legend Dominique Wilkins , making the moment even more special.
"Oh man, thank you, Golden State Warriors ," said Wilkins. "We appreciate it…But I'm not surprised. I mean, this kind of play, we've seen Kuminga do before, you know, in Golden State, man. How you give up on a guy that young with that ability is beyond me."
Wilkins played 12 of his 15 NBA seasons with the Hawks and led them to eight postseason appearances. He earned nine All-Star Game selections and seven All-NBA nods as a member of the Hawks and is the franchise's all-time leader in points scored, scoring average and minutes played.
For Wilkins to complement Kuminga the way he did says a lot about the 23-year-old and more about the Golden State Warriors.
Golden State originally selected Kuminga seventh overall in the 2021 NBA Draft, but, much like they mishandled Jordan Poole , the Warriors underutilized him on the bench before eventually moving him in a trade ahead of the deadline.
The Warriors traded Kuminga and Buddy Hield to the Hawks for Kristaps Porzingis . Porzingis has played only 17 minutes since arriving in San Francisco, so that in itself is already a win for Atlanta. So far, Kuminga has averaged 21.3 points, 7.6 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 1.7 steals in three games with the Hawks, and Atlanta is 3-0 during that span.
Overall, the Hawks have won four in a row and are currently 31-31, in ninth place in the Eastern Conference standings. They are just 1.5 games behind the seventh seed and only three off the No.6 Philadelphia 76ers , who are in a bubble right now because of Joel Embiid 's latest injury.
With Jalen Johnson , Nickeil Alexander-Walker , Dyson Daniels , Onyeka Okongwu and Zaccharie Risacher , Wilkins recently said the Hawks have what it takes to make a run at the playoffs.
"We have something special, and we can be that new young team that makes a difference in that Eastern Conference," Wilkins said . "I look for us to make a difference now. Not waiting for next year, because we are right there. In this league, it'll only take you a month to get hot. You look at the Charlotte Hornets. They won 10 of the last 12, so they got hot at the right time, going into the All-Star break, coming into the second half of the season. You need a quick run like that, maybe not eight or nine games, but you get on a five or six-game winning streak, that changes things."
The Hawks have now won four straight games. They'll look to extend the streak to five against the Milwaukee Bucks on March 4 and six against the 76ers on March 8.
Following those matchups, Atlanta faces the Dallas Mavericks , Brooklyn Nets and the Bucks, putting Wilkins' playoff prediction to the test. As for Kuminga's emergence as a star, Wilkins made it clear during Sunday's broadcast how impressed he is — now it's on the 23-year-old forward to (at least) keep the momentum going.
This story was originally published by Basketball Network on Mar 2, 2026, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
