It's no surprise that Golden State Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga has demanded a trade from the team. What is a bit surprising is that the Los Angeles Lakers are being floated as a potential landing spot for the disgruntled young forward.
Both sides clearly want to move on, but would the Warriors really entertain sending Kuminga to a Western Conference rival like the Lakers when it could easily blow up in their face?
Warriors linked to Lakers amidst Kuminga trade drama
The Athletic confirmed on Thursday that the Lakers do indeed have interest in Kuminga that stems from his elongated free agency process during the offseason.
"League and team sources confirmed a report that the Lakers have some interest in Kuminga, though it remains unclear if talks will unfold. The Warriors, the sources said, are aware of the intrigue and waiting to see how that situation evolves."
That is obviously very vague and does not provide much in terms of specifics of what the Lakers might be willing to give up in exchange for the 23-year-old. The Sacramento Kings and Dallas Mavericks are two other teams rumored to have interest as well.
Yet, it is still noteworthy that the Lakers are involved in these talks. What might the Warriors get out of a deal like that? Kuminga for Bronny James? LeBron would probably stick a fork in that one.
But in all seriousness, the Warriors know that Kuminga's value has dropped significantly. Head coach Steve Kerr's decision to hardly play him at all does not exactly have teams clamoring for Kuminga, leaving the front office to point to past success like his solid performance against the Minnesota Timberwolves in the playoffs last season
Kuminga has never fully been able to prove himself with the Warriors. That is due to a lot of reasons, but any team that acquires him is taking a chance on the fact that he'll be able to unlock a higher level his defenders claim has not been accessed with Golden State due to factors outside his control.
That means a team is taking on a risk, and a team like the Lakers, who are currently fifth in the Western Conference, probably won't be willing to give up much in the way of assets to acquire the former seventh overall pick.
Then there's also the chance that Kuminga figure things out with the Lakers. What a gut punch that would be for Golden State to have a key rival unlock his potential which would undoubtedly burn the franchise for years.
We will see how this whole situation resolves itself, but the Warriors should think long and hard before potentially trading Kuminga to the Lakers because of its potential to backfire.