Jonathan Kuminga continues to play hardball with the Golden State Warriors, as other teams circle the waters.
Jonathan Kuminga and the Golden State Warriors just can’t come to an agreement over the star’s future.
We learned that the Warriors offered Kuminga a two-year, $45 million contract recently. This offer included a team option and a request to waive his no-trade clause.
But Kuminga turned down this Warriors offer, as he felt it took away a lot of control from him. Which means the two sides are back where they started.
The Sacramento Kings are one of the teams interested in landing Jonathan Kuminga. But the Warriors refuse to take DeMar DeRozan in any sign-and-trade deal.
With these failed negotiations now costing Kuminga other opportunities, one has to wonder when and how this situation will be resolved.
Shams Charania spoke on ESPN about the current situation between Jonathan Kuminga and the Golden State Warriors.
He explained that the best path forward for both sides is a sign-and-trade, mentioning the Phoenix Suns and the Sacramento Kings as two teams that are interested.
“The other route for Jonathan Kuminga is a sign-and-trade.
“The Phoenix Suns and Sacramento Kings have both had interest in him, have given him offers up to four years, $90 million, given him a player option, promised him a starting role, guaranteed minutes, and control over his future with that player option.
“But clearly, the Warriors, as of now, have shunned all sign-and-trade offers. Right now, what we see is a stalemate.”
As things are looking, the Golden State Warriors have little say in the matter. It appears agreeing to a sign-and-trade might be their best course of action.
But even in that scenario, the Warriors are playing hardball. It appears they are demanding a first-round pick from the Sacramento Kings, who have only offered conditional picks so far.
This is where the Warriors are playing a dangerous game. The more difficult they make these negotiations, the longer this situation is going to take to resolve itself.
Kuminga’s free agency has halted the Warriors’ offseason. The longer this goes on, the further behind the Warriors will be compared to the rest of the NBA.
Furthermore, making life difficult for an exiting young player isn’t going to make Golden State the free agency destination they hope to be next season.
