Like seemingly everybody around the NBA, Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr knows Jonathan Kuminga’s future with the team is more than uncertain, and will likely end in the next month and a half before the trade deadline.
For the past few months, ever since signing a two-year extension with the franchise late in the offseason, the 23-year-old’s future with the Warriors has been subject to mass speculation and scrutiny.
Most recently, after taking Kuminga out of the rotation for the most part, Kerr himself discussed how he feels about the forward and what he must be going through while hearing his name in trade rumors on a daily basis.
“Everybody wants honesty. They don’t want to be pandered to. They want to know what’s what, but you have to deliver those messages with some empathy,” Kerr said in a recent appearance on The Tom Tolbert Show. “It’s a tough spot to be in.”
This season, Kuminga is averaging 11.8 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 2.6 assists on 43.1% shooting in 18 games. He recently had a stretch in which Kerr benched him for multiple contests in a row, and after playing just ten minutes in a recent matchup against the Phoenix Suns, he was once again sidelined with an illness.
Kerr Compares Kuminga’s Situation To Former Warriors Champion
While they haven’t always seen eye to eye in the past, Kerr has been sympathetic to Kuminga’s current situation, despite being the one who took him out of the rotation and one of the figures behind his uncertain future with the team.
Speaking in the same interview, Kerr compared Kuminga’s current status to that of Andrew Wiggins, who, after being added by the Warriors in 2019 and winning a championship with the team in 2022, was traded for Jimmy Butler at the 2025 deadline. Like Kuminga, Wiggins found himself in numerous trade rumors and reports on his future with the franchise over his last few years in Golden State.
“And Andrew Wiggins was in this exact boat a year ago, and Wigs actually was about to have his third child right at the trade deadline, and his name was floating out there, and we kind of go through this every year,” Kerr said. “But there’s always like a player or two who become the focal point of the trade deadline.”
Though Wiggins played a big role on the team during their 2022 title run, like Kuminga, he was always mentioned as an asset they could move on from to add another, bigger piece to remain in title contention. They, in fact, made that move to trade him for Butler, and like the rumors surrounding Kuminga, he expects to be that same asset moved to hopefully vault Golden State back into title contention.
Kuminga Trade Rumors, Warriors Future
Despite having a strong start to the year, the idea of a potential trade for Golden State to add another solid contributor has been obvious since he signed his deal, and after Kerr hit the forward with multiple DNPs in a row, his fate feels all but sealed.
“I always just try to talk to the guys about the business and this is how it works and how few players in NBA history played for one franchise and it’s all part of the deal that you sign up for but it doesn’t make it any easier when you feel like you’re being shipped off and you got to pack up your family and go,” Kerr added. “It’s hard, and I just think it’s important to acknowledge that to the players and try to understand that part of the business.”
Numerous teams like the Sacramento Kings, New Orleans Pelicans, Chicago Bulls, and Suns have shown reported interest in making a deal for Kuminga, but as time goes on and new reports emerge, it’s hard to say which of those franchises has actual intrigue in adding the wing.
In a recent list published by The Athletic, Kuminga was named the eighth-best player on the trade market. Though the Warriors would prefer to send him out for an upgrade on both sides of the ball, considering his recent status within the team, they might be hard-pressed to find even another solid contributor who can come off the bench in a trade for Kuminga.
After five seasons with the team, Kuminga can officially be traded on January 15th, but the Warriors will only have a few weeks before the February 6th trade deadline to find a deal.
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