The Golden State Warriors have never quite committed to Jonathan Kuminga factoring into their plans. It's an admittedly difficult statement to process considering the franchise selected Kuminga at No. 7 overall in the 2021 NBA Draft, but it's yet to display any type of sustained interest in his development.
That's ultimately led the Warriors to where they are now: Unable to convince Kuminga that a team-friendly contract offer might actually prove mutually beneficial.
Golden State's most prominently reported offer to Kuminga was a two-year, $45 million deal. On the surface, it seems to be a contract that would favor both sides, as Kuminga would receive a significant pay raise and the Warriors would have a salary on the books that should prove easy to trade.
Unfortunately, there are two conditions that appear to be holding this deal up: A second-year team option and the removal of the first-year no-trade clause.
That epitomizes Kuminga's experience through four seasons with the Warriors. Even when it's seemed like an advantageous situation for him to be in, the fine print has revealed why the fit has never been quite as ideal as it seems.
As September nears and the Warriors continue to face the possibility of the worst-case scenario taking shape, one can't help but wonder if this isn't just an extension of how Kuminga has always been treated.
Jonathan Kuminga negotiations reflect tone of his Warriors career
There's much to be said about how both sides have handled contract negotiations up to this point. No one is free from blame in the situation remaining unresolved, as everyone involved could've done things differently at various points over the past four years.
For as true as that may be, one can't help but feel as though the writing has long been on the wall and the Warriors are acting as though it isn't.
Kuminga has little reason to accept the current offer outside of the guarantee of a two-year contract with an admittedly significant pay increase. It'd give him greater security than potentially accepting his qualifying offer would, as there's no guaranteeing he'll have the same type of market value in 2026.
Leveraging that possibility against Kuminga, however, is a double-edged sword—and the Warriors have already hurt themselves with it.
There's a sincere possibility that Kuminga will accept his qualifying offer at roughly $7.9 million. If he does so, he'd not only become an unrestricted free agent in 2026, but it would be significantly more difficult for the Warriors to trade him and thus avoid losing a former top-10 pick for no return.
In that scenario, Golden State may have to do what it's reportedly hoping to avoid in a sign-and-trade this summer: Include one of its other players to move Kuminga.
The Warriors clearly shouldn't accept a sign-and-trade offer for Kuminga that they aren't fond of. They should, however, give serious thought to accepting the best option at their disposal before the 22-year-old gambles on himself and backs them into a corner by accepting his qualifying offer.
Perhaps this will all play out in a more favorable manner than anticipated, but the current state of affairs is a direct result of how the Warriors have mishandled Kuminga's career.