A new team has entered the picture as the Golden State Warriors and their restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga are trying to find a win-win solution to their predicament.
According to NBA insider Jake Fischer, the Phoenix Suns, fresh off buying out three-time All-Star Bradley Beal, have registered their interest in the 22-year-old Kuminga.
“Sources say Phoenix, meanwhile, is the latest team to express exploratory interest in a Kuminga sign-and-trade … challenging as it would be for the Suns to make such a deal happen,” Fischer wrote on “The Stein Line” Substack newsletter on July 17.
The Suns have reached out to both Kuminga’s representation and the Warriors “to make their fondness for the bouncy swingman known,” according to Fischer.
However, no deal is imminent as the Suns face hurdles in a potential sign-and-trade for the Warriors’ former No. 7 pick.
“The Suns, to be clear, do not appear to possess the sort of draft capital or players that Golden State is believed to be seeking in exchange for Kuminga,” Fischer wrote.
But Fischer noted that the Suns’ interest in Kuminga dates back to their trade conversations for Kevin Durant in February.
The Complicated Sign-and-Trade Path
Getty Jonathan Kuminga of the Golden State Warriors defends against Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns.
According to ClutchPoint’s Brett Siegel, Kuminga and his representatives met with Golden State last week at the start of the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas.
“The update I got was that things went as expected: No deal, but an understanding of what everything is looking like,” Siegel wrote on X.
This was confirmed by Fischer, who reported that Aaron Turner, Kuminga’s agent, “has held numerous discussions” with Warriors officials last week.
On top of the lack of money in the free agent market, another thing that complicates Kuminga’s situation is a quirk in the Collective Bargaining Agreement rules.
In a sign-and-trade scenario, only 50% of his outgoing salary is accounted for matching purposes. But his full salary counts as the incoming salary for whichever team acquires him.
For example, if Kuminga signs for $30 million annual average salary, the Warriors can only trade him for a player or players worth just $15 million. Their trade partner, on the other hand, will absorb the full $30 million in their books.
While it’s not impossible, it is not a straightforward path.
Warriors Not Looking to Dump Jonathan Kuminga
The Warriors are looking for value in exchange for Kuminga.
That was crystal clear when they rejected a trade offer from the Sacramento Kings, which Anthony Slater, previously of The Athletic, reported on July 3 before his move to ESPN.
“They’ve drawn inbound calls in recent days, most notably from the Sacramento Kings, who floated an offer of Devin Carter, Dario Šarić and two second-round picks, league sources said. The Warriors have so far balked at what they felt was a buy-low attempt, league sources said,” Slater wrote.
Slater added that the Warriors are looking for “a promising young player, plus a first-round pick” in a sign-and-trade scenario for the 22-year-old athletic forward.
Up to this point, no team has come forward willing to pay the hefty price tag.
So, we wait.
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