A lot has happened in the past week since Jonathan Kuminga became trade-eligible on Jan. 15 and "demanded" a trade from the Golden State Warriors. He hadn't played in weeks, making it seem like, once again, he already had one foot out the door. Well, that was until Jimmy Butler tore his ACL on Monday, shifting the team's deadline plans.
Before Butler got hurt, there was a lot of uncertainty surrounding Kuminga and the Warriors. He was out of the rotation, so the little trade value he had tanked, reducing the chance that Golden State could get a valuable rotation player or two in return for him. That doesn't mean that the front office wasn't going to try to make something happen before Feb. 5, though.
Here we are now, and as NBA insider Marc Stein of The Stein Line reported on Wednesday, it's "hard to imagine" that the Warriors can find a trade for Kuminga (subscription required) in the next two weeks that will elevate them to contender status with Butler out for the rest of the season.
In other words, unless the Warriors can work magic and turn nothing into something, Kuminga will finish the season in San Francisco.
Jonathan Kuminga could finish the season with the Warriors
The best-case scenario for Kuminga and the team, at this point, is for him to raise his trade value during the second half of the season (assuming he remains in the rotation with Butler out). He has a $24.3 million team option for the 2026-27 season that the Warriors would exercise to trade him over the summer.
Kuminga could finally get his chance to join a team where he can be the player he believes he can be, an outcome he's waited for what feels like forever. No, that doesn't mean he doesn't have flaws that could prevent him from being that player, but Golden State has held onto him for too long, and for what?
Speaking of, that's why you shouldn't expect the Warriors to let go of him before the deadline. The kind of deal they want won't materialize. Maybe the front office will get desperate, though, trying to move Kuminga in hopes of making a playoff run with Steph Curry this season. That would actually require the organization to reach uncharted levels of desperation.
Kuminga only thought that he was entering his final weeks in the Bay. Just like that, it seemed like everything changed. All he can do now is make the most of the current opportunity, which should lessen the odds of Kerr banishing him back to the bench.