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It has become clear that a Jonathan Kuminga return to the Atlanta Hawks this offseason likely isn't in the cards, but that doesn't mean the team can simply close the book on his situation.
Kuminga and the Hawks may still need each other, as a sign-and-trade to get the 23-year-old to his next destination remains in play.
But there are multiple boxes that need to be checked before that can happen, and one of them is that Kuminga needs to come to an agreement with a team on a contract. Complicating matters is that the former lottery pick reportedly would like to earn something in the range of $20 million per year.
As NBA reporter Jovan Buha put it, Kuminga wasn't interested in a deal worth $10 million per year from the Los Angeles Lakers, as he's looking for something "closer" to $20 million per year and "north" of $15 million.
A separate report from Dan Woike of The Athletic also detailed that in addition to Kuminga and the Lakers being far apart on terms, Los Angeles isn't "overly motivated to push significant draft capital into sign-and-trade scenarios."
The Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers are teams that have been frequently linked to Kuminga. If he were to land with either of them (or some other team) through a sign-and-trade transaction, that would make a lot of sense for the Hawks, who would have a chance to net some sort of return instead of letting Kuminga walk with nothing to show for it.
But there are clearly some obstacles in the way of a Lakers deal, and the Cavs are among the teams in the mix for free agent LeBron James, who would completely change the game for them at the wing spot. It's unclear if they would still pursue Kuminga if they were to land James.
One way or another, Kuminga is sure to land with a team ahead of the 2026-27 season, but right now, his situation is murky. He is coming off a season in which he was traded by the team that drafted him, as the Golden State Warriors moved him to the Hawks.
With Atlanta, he was serviceable, but he didn't show much more than he did with the Warriors. Between the two teams, he finished the season averaging 12.2 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game while shooting 46.3 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from 3-point range.
Continue reading...
Kuminga and the Hawks may still need each other, as a sign-and-trade to get the 23-year-old to his next destination remains in play.
But there are multiple boxes that need to be checked before that can happen, and one of them is that Kuminga needs to come to an agreement with a team on a contract. Complicating matters is that the former lottery pick reportedly would like to earn something in the range of $20 million per year.
As NBA reporter Jovan Buha put it, Kuminga wasn't interested in a deal worth $10 million per year from the Los Angeles Lakers, as he's looking for something "closer" to $20 million per year and "north" of $15 million.
A separate report from Dan Woike of The Athletic also detailed that in addition to Kuminga and the Lakers being far apart on terms, Los Angeles isn't "overly motivated to push significant draft capital into sign-and-trade scenarios."
The Lakers and Cleveland Cavaliers are teams that have been frequently linked to Kuminga. If he were to land with either of them (or some other team) through a sign-and-trade transaction, that would make a lot of sense for the Hawks, who would have a chance to net some sort of return instead of letting Kuminga walk with nothing to show for it.
But there are clearly some obstacles in the way of a Lakers deal, and the Cavs are among the teams in the mix for free agent LeBron James, who would completely change the game for them at the wing spot. It's unclear if they would still pursue Kuminga if they were to land James.
One way or another, Kuminga is sure to land with a team ahead of the 2026-27 season, but right now, his situation is murky. He is coming off a season in which he was traded by the team that drafted him, as the Golden State Warriors moved him to the Hawks.
With Atlanta, he was serviceable, but he didn't show much more than he did with the Warriors. Between the two teams, he finished the season averaging 12.2 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game while shooting 46.3 percent from the field and 33.3 percent from 3-point range.
Continue reading...
