Jonathan Kuminga has rejected the latest round of contract offers from the Golden State Warriors, but that may be more about his desire to depart the franchise than it is about the actual financial value.
The Warriors have assuredly offered something near what the league considers as fair value, with Fred Katz of The Athletic recently polling 16 NBA executives which paints a crystal clear picture of what Kuminga's next contract should be.
A 3-year, $60 million contract seems right for Jonathan Kuminga
The poll would suggest that an annual salary of $20 million is about right for Kuminga, while the majority of league executives believe the former seventh overall pick should get a three-year contract.
"Answers ranged from $17 million to $25 million in average annual value. The mean average annual value in the poll was $20.4 million. One executive suggested a two-year contract. Ten mentioned three-year contracts. Four people said four years," Katz wrote.
A deal around three-year, $60 million and with a third-year player option would seem about right for Kuminga. That would allow the 22-year-old to get paid and opt out in 2027 if his form justifies a bigger deal, while it's also at a price point that would give Golden State the flexibility to trade Kuminga rather than be so high that they're stuck with his contract.
Unfortunately for the Warriors, it appears just as much about role and opportunity than the finances. ESPN's Anthony Slater reported on Thursday that Mike Dunleavy Jr. and the front office had approached Kuminga with an extra level of motivation to get a deal done this week, also believing that they've offered the highest starting salary that's currently available to him.
Golden State are open to sign-and-trade possibilities, but they're also valuing him in discussions to a point where nothing has been particularly close. Their optimism on what Kuminga could has been shared by one executive in the poll who interestingly compared him to Minnesota Timberwolves forward Jaden McDaniels.
That comparison has been made in the past, but has since gone quiet after Kuminga still struggled to secure a solidified role with the Warriors in his fourth year. The anonymous executive even went as far to suggest that "J.K. is more talented and has higher upside if he ever can hit."
Whether Kuminga re-signs with the Warriors or officially departs the franchise in a sign-and-trade, we can foreseeably expect his new contract to be about three years in length and somewhere between $60-70 million. Unless, of course, if he takes the drastic measure of signing his one-year, $7.9 million qualifying offer.