The prolonged trade saga of Warriors’ forward Jonathan Kuminga may be coming to an end as ESPN Insider Anthony Slater confirms their demands from any team interested in a sign-and-trade for the restricted free agent. On Brian Windhorst’s Hoops Collective podcast, Slater revealed that the Warriors’ ask from any team can be simplified into a list of three demands: a young player, a first-round pick, and no bad contracts.
“Part of the reason that a sign and trade hasn’t been done for Kuminga. There’s been, you know, particularly the Kings and Suns, I would say, have been the most aggressive is because the Warriors have been pretty steadfast in their requirement of at least a first-round pick. They also want a young player, and they don’t want to take on a bad contract,” said Slater as he addressed the Warriors’ asset management issue.
“And that’s what’s really, you know, held a lot of this stuff up cause it’s like not only does the team have to want to sign Jonathan Kuminga, convince Jonathan Kuminga to take this dollar amount and he has high ambitions for his next contract, but also they then have to call the Warriors and make a pretty decent value trade where you’re giving up a pick and a young player, that type of stuff. That’s why so much of this stuff is just in gridlock.”
Just last night, NBA Insider Shams Charania confirmed that Kuminga is in no rush to accept any offers from the Warriors and seemingly values himself worthy of a $25 million per year contract. And the Warriors have also refused any offers from the Kings and Suns, among other teams interested in Kuminga.
Kuminga averaged 15.3 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 2.2 assists for the Warriors last season. Midway through the NBA Playoffs, reports claimed that Kuminga and Steve Kerr, the Warriors’ head coach, have a strained relationship, which could partly be the reason why Kuminga would’ve likely played his last game in a Warriors jersey if things had gone his way in the free agency market.
The Kings and the Suns are only the frontrunners in a list of multiple teams reportedly interested in Kuminga. However, for any sign and trade to happen, Kuminga first needs to accept an offer. Otherwise, he may be put in a position where he has no choice but to take the $7.9 million qualifying offer from the Warriors if he wants to continue this year in the NBA.
It is seeming less likely by each passing day that Kuminga will be able to find a team that not only matches his demands but also matches the Warriors’ demands in a deal for Kuminga.
In my opinion, this information coming from a reliable insider like Slater only goes to show that even the Warriors now seem desperate to find Kuminga a new home while being adamant on getting the right value in return for him. At some point, either of the parties will need to compromise here. But it seems for now, the Warriors have all the leverage.
