It seems the Warriors are eager to put the Jonathan Kuminga saga to rest.
After months of negotiations without a deal, Golden State, late last week, upped its contract offer to the restricted free-agent forward to three years and $75.2 million with a team option for the third season, ESPN’s Shams Charania and Anthony Slater reported in a story on Monday, citing sources.
The Warriors, according to Charania and Slater, are requesting the same framework as their previous two-year, $45 million offer, with the team option and Kuminga waiving his inherent no-trade clause. Golden State’s unwillingness to budge on the team option in both of their offers, according to ESPN, is a major part of the holdup.
However, the Warriors also have offered Kuminga a three-year, $54 million fully guaranteed non-team-option deal as well, ESPN reported, citing sources.
Kuminga and his agent, Aaron Turner, according to ESPN, presented the Warriors a counteroffer in the last week, which is a one-year deal on a negotiable number, which essentially is a “souped-up” version of the $7.9-million qualifying offer. This proposal would give Kuminga a financial bump for the 2025-26 NBA season while allowing him to become an unrestricted free agent next summer and giving Golden State the opportunity to use his contract as an expiring deal at the trade deadline.
The Warriors, according to ESPN, declined the concept.
Kuminga was selected by Golden State with the No. 7 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, and in four seasons with the Warriors, has averaged 12.5 points, 4 rebounds and 1.8 assists on 50.7-percent shooting from the field and 33.2 percent from 3-point range in 22 minutes per game while struggling to maintain a consistent role in coach Steve Kerr’s rotations.
It appears increasingly likely he will remain with the team for his fifth NBA season, but in what capacity, remains to be seen.
