Lottery picks have a very wide range of outcomes in the NBA. For Jonathan Kuminga, it meant playing a key role on a team that won the NBA Finals as a rookie after being selected seventh overall in the 2022 NBA Draft.
Kuminga started just 12 games during the regular season and three more in the NBA Finals, but he played a fairly significant chunk, 16.9 minutes per game, in 70 appearances.
Kuminga Free Agency Market Heating Up
He’s played five seasons, and four of them have been for teams that reached the playoffs. Kuminga has carved out a consistent path to playing time, thanks in part to finishing with 10 or more PPG in three of his five seasons of play.
But he’s only started more than half of his appearances once, when he started 46 of 74 games for the Warriors, ironically in the lone season he didn’t reach the postseason.
A year after an awkward restricted free agency led him right back to Golden State, Kuminga is available, this time on the open market as an unrestricted free agent. Several teams have already expressed interest in the 6-foot-7 swingman, and he could be the next free agency domino to fall.
Teams could be eyeing Kuminga, hoping there’s still untapped potential to unlock in the 23-year-old. Yet, even as he is, he’s a productive piece who can fit into many teams’ plans.
The Atlanta Hawks, who acquired the forward along with Buddy Hield while shipping out Kristaps Porziņģis, are interested in re-signing Kuminga. But they’re also facing competition from several others.
According to NBA insider Marc Stein, those include the Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Lakers, and Milwaukee Bucks.
Another possibility may be reuniting Kuminga with former Warriors assistant coach Kenny Atkinson, who now coaches in Cleveland. Though Stein notes that a sign-and-trade would have to be worked out to get Kuminga in a Cavaliers uniform due to cap constraints.
“A sign-and-trade would need to be worked out to get Kuminga to Cleveland and reunite him with former Warriors assistant coach Kenny Atkinson. The Bucks are expected to have various trade exception routes to take in Kuminga via sign-and-trade after officially completing the Antetokounmpo blockbuster,” Stein writes.
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“The Bucks are expected to have various trade exception routes to take in Kuminga via sign-and-trade after officially completing the Antetokounmpo blockbuster.”
Meanwhile, as Stein reported, Kuminga has also been linked to the Lakers. The Athletic’s Dan Woike recently revealed that the Lakers are still hoping to add another young swingman who can help on defense, too.
“The team, according to league sources who were granted anonymity to freely discuss the Lakers’ offseason moves, is still seeking a young wing to help its perimeter defense. A high-upside swing receiving significant consideration, per league sources, is former Golden State Warrior and Atlanta Hawk Jonathan Kuminga, whose $24.3 million team option was recently declined by Atlanta.”
The Lakers haven’t been afraid to spend big bucks and shake up the roster this offseason. Could Kuminga be the next piece of the puzzle? If so, they’ll have to beat out several other teams to secure his services for 2026.
