The Golden State Warriors have not made any progress with free agent forward Jonathan Kuminga since the start of the offseason. The Warriors want to sign the youngster to a team-friendly deal that would allow him to be easily traded down the line. Kuminga, however, wants to earn at least $30 million annually, something Golden State finds difficult to achieve.
It would be difficult for the team to pursue a move for the 22-year-old if they offered him such a deal. First of all, he hasn’t proven himself as a legitimate star in the NBA. Giving a player such a contract without knowing what to expect is a risk organizations are willing to take.
Secondly, he doesn’t have a starting role with the Warriors. Since they traded for Jimmy Butler last season, it was clear that the franchise was focused on building the team around experienced All-Stars.
In an episode of NBA Today, former champion with the Boston Celtics, Kendrick Perkins, gave Kuminga a reality check on his contract negotiations with the Warriors.
“I don’t know if Jonathan Kuminga watches NBA Today, but they don’t want you, dawg. They don’t value you because if they did, you wouldn’t be going through this. And it started last season, Steve Kerr showed you how he felt about you,” Perkins said.
“When you look at this situation, it will cause turmoil in the locker room if you bring him back at $7.9 million because he’s gonna go out there and play individual basketball, and it’s hard for me to tell a guy not to go out there and get his numbers because I know he wants to get paid!”
Kuminga wants to get paid for what he thinks he’s worth. However, many believe that the Warriors aren’t interested in building their future around him.
Golden State Warriors urged to sign German star following EuroBasket win
There have been rumors about who the Golden State Warriors are targeting this offseason. Players like Al Horford, De’Anthony Melton, Gary Payton II, and Seth Curry have all been linked to the team. However, no real moves from the front office has happened.
In the wake of the German men’s national basketball team winning the gold medal in the 2025 FIBA EuroBasket, there was an interesting suggestion for the Warriors. According to SI’s Liam Willerup wrote about signing forward Isaac Bonga to a contract.
“With Partizan, Bonga was able to improve as a three-point shooter, shooting over 40% from three across league and tournament play. Golden State, who can only benefit from more spacing with Butler and Draymond Green being below average from three, could find a role for Bonga,” Willerup wrote.
Bonga adds size, length and floor spacing that would be beneficial for the Warriors’ system. They need more size now that Kevon Looney is not part of the team anymore.
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Reign also writes NBA and WNBA news updates on Sportskeeda. He started as a feature writer for AirAlamo, an NBA website that covers the San Antonio Spurs. Some of his work can also be seen on Valley of the Suns, a Phoenix Suns-centric website, where he served as a contributing writer.
