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At just 20 years old, Jonathan Kuminga has already endured a roller coaster of an NBA journey. The No. 7 overall pick in the 2021 draft, Kuminga showed athleticism and promise as a rookie who convinced the Golden State Warriors that he could be a much bigger part of their rotation during the 2022-23 season. Instead, he received sporadic playing time and completely fell out of the rotation on points during the regular season and playoffs.
It leaves the Warriors in an interesting position as they try to recover from a second round exit of the playoffs the year after winning their fourth NBA title in eight seasons. The infamous “two timelines” strategy didn’t work out, as Kuminga failed to come to fruition, Moses Moody barely played until the postseason, and James Wiseman was traded to Gary Payton II before the deadline.
As it turns out, the Warriors will soon be ready to cut the bait with one of their other future prospects. According to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony, Golden State is exploring the possibility of trading Kuminga or another of its young players to move up to a “high draft pick”.
A rift between Kuminga and the Warriors is not a new idea. Last month, after the Warriors were knocked out in six games by the Los Angeles Lakers, The Athletic reported that Kuminga and his representatives could request a trade if he wasn’t guaranteed a full-time role at Golden State.
Kuminga also sounded some alarm bells with comments about his lack of playing time during the postseason.
“It’s hard to get through this season and be in (the game) most of the time and then things just pop up out of the blue without you knowing what’s going on,” Kuminga told The San Francisco Chronicle last month. . “… It’s still hard to hold every time. It’s still hard to smile every time.”
The Warriors face a host of off-season questions, including Draymond Green’s possible free duty, a possible extension for Klay Thompson, the $128 million four-year Jordan Poole contract starting next season, plus the search for a new front office chief after the departure of Bob Myers.
If Golden State gets the band back together, a starting spot is essentially off the table for Kuminga, who would fall in the frontcourt behind Green and Andrew Wiggins, with Moody, Payton, last year’s first-round pick, Patrick Baldwin Jr. potential off-season acquisitions also compete for time on the forward.
Should the Warriors spot a prospect in another position that might help unclog the blockade, it could certainly make sense to trade Kuminga. On the other hand, Kuminga has shown he can be a good two-way winger with an All-Star ceiling (or higher), so it would be hard to imagine giving up a 20-year-old with that advantage. His talent was on display during a promising stretch from mid-February to the end of the regular season, as he averaged 13.4 points and 4.3 rebounds per game on 56 percent field goal shooting, 44 percent of which came on 3-point range, while Wiggins was away from the team.
But therein lies the problem for the Warriors. With Stephen Curry at an MVP level, plus an aging Green and Thompson, they know their championship window is still open, but closing quickly. They want to compete for championships without leaving the closet empty for when those guys finally move on, which is a monumental challenge that can involve tough decisions.
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