Nets just screwed Jonathan Kuminga in further boost to Warriors contract leverage

Rival teams would have hardly been shaken by the NBA's latest trade on Thursday, but it may come as welcome news for the Golden State Warriors as they continue to try and find a solution on the future of Jonathan Kuminga.

The Miami Heat have dumped the contract of Haywood Highsmith to the Brooklyn Nets, sending out a 2032 second-round pick in the process while receiving a 2026 second-round pick that’s protected 31-55 and is therefore unlikely to convey.

The Warriors now have more leverage in Jonathan Kuminga negotiations

So, what does this mean for the Warriors aside from potentially monitoring Highsmith as a mid-season trade target if he can rehabilitate his value? Well, the Nets decision to absorb another contract and essentially buy a second-round pick means that practically no team can now realistically create the sort of cap room to outright sign Jonathan Kuminga in the event that Golden State do their other business first.

Part of Kuminga’s leverage right now is that his restricted free agency is stalling the Warriors from making their subsequent free agency signings. However, that leverage is now out the window to a certain degree thanks to the Highsmith trade.

There was little thought that the Nets were going to be interested in Kuminga anyway, but they could have theoretically cleared enough cap room to sign Kuminga to an offer sheet that Golden State could not legally match if they decided to sign Al Horford beforehand.

By making this trade and taking in Highsmith’s $5.6 million contract for next season, the Nets now have less than $15 million in available cap space. That’s a mark the Warriors will be able to match regardless of their other moves, not that Kuminga is going to accept a $15 million per year offer anyway.

Golden State could now go about making their other signings rather than waiting for the Kuminga situation to resolve itself, yet there’s a good chance they’ll still hold off for multiple reasons. Firstly, you never know what sort of out-of-the-box, drastic move a team could make to suddenly open up cap room – just look at what the Milwaukee Bucks did in waiving-and-stretching Damian Lillard in order to sign Myles Turner at the start of free agency.

Secondly, the likes of Horford and others could be willing to wait to see if they can get more money on their contracts depending on what Kuminga gets, particularly if the 22-year-old makes the stunning decision to sign the qualifying offer.

Thirdly, the Warriors will want full roster flexibility just in case they make a Kuminga sign-and-trade that sees them bring back two or more players from the Sacramento Kings, Phoenix Suns or whichever rival team it might be.

So while the Highsmith trade may not accelerate the Warriors making their other signings, it does give them added leverage and screws any slim chance that Kuminga may have had of being able to walk freely to another team this offseason.