An NBA trade idea sending Golden State Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga to the Phoenix Suns has been created.
NBA writer Ishaan Bhattacharya of Athlon Sports created the following trade idea between the Warriors and Suns:
Phoenix Suns Receive: Jonathan Kuminga
Golden State Warriors Receive: Royce O’Neale, Nick Richards, 2026 Second-Round Pick (OKC/DAL/PHI), 2029 Second-Round Pick (PHX)
Kuminga is a restricted free agent and doesn’t want to return to the Warriors. The Suns are interested in Kuminga, but they have yet to sign the swingman to an offer sheet.
As a restricted free agent, Kuminga has three options: re-sign with the Warriors on a new deal (which he doesn’t want to do), play next season with Golden State on a qualifying offer worth $7.9 million and enter unrestricted free agency next offseason (another option he doesn’t want to do) or sign an offer sheet with a rival team (this is what he wants).
If Kuminga signs an offer sheet with a team, the Warriors can either match the offer sheet or let the 22-year-old leave and execute a sign-and-trade deal.
Kuminga played in 47 games for the Warriors last season. He averaged 15.3 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.2 assists while shooting 45.4% from the field, 30.5% from beyond the arc and 66.8% from the free-throw line.
Golden State head coach Steve Kerr benched Kuminga for the final game of the regular season against the Los Angeles Clippers and the play-in game versus the Memphis Grizzlies. Kuminga only played in Games 2 and 3 of the Houston Rockets postseason series because Jimmy Butler was injured.
The seventh overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft, Kuminga played in every game of the Minnesota Timberwolves playoff series only because Stephen Curry got injured in Game 1 and missed the rest of the series.
Kuminga has career averages of 12.5 points, 4.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists. It will be fascinating to see where he’s playing next season, but in a perfect world for Kuminga, he will not be back with the Warriors.