Jonathan Kuminga and the Golden State Warriors both have their eyes on the clock. As soon as the fifth-year swingman became trade-eligible on Thursday, he requested his ticket out of town. One can easily assume Golden State is ready and willing to grant that wish—provided his market hasn't totally cratered already.
Not just any Kuminga trade will do, though. The Warriors need to somehow use his salary slot (plus most of the assets they possess) to extract real value. That's why a phone call to the Memphis Grizzlies should be in order. Because if they're willing to reset the roster in ways beyond just a Ja Morant deal, they might have exactly what the Warriors need.
Jaren Jackson Jr. might be an all-purpose problem solver in Golden State.
When the Dubs' decision-makers start thinking about what they really need to find during NBA trade season, they'll surely notice all of the arrows inevitably pointing toward Jackson.
Size is a need, and the 6'10", 242-pounder clearly checks that box. Defensive versatility is another, and he'd easily provide that with paint protection, perimeter switching, and everything in between. Offensively, the aim would be support scoring and floor spacing. Since the start of last season, he's a nightly 21-point scorer with a 37.1 percent splash rate (on significant volume).
He is, in a sense, everything the Warriors could possibly want in a roster addition—just maybe not available. That one's murky.
Memphis would presumably prefer to reset its roster around Jackson as soon as it finds a taker for Morant. But is Jackson really keen on staying in a locker room that would no longer feature Morant or Desmond Bane? Folks are skeptical, for good reason.
If Jackson wants to be in a situation more conducive to winning, the Warriors can give him that chance.
They haven't had a great season, but they have hinted at having the capacity to be great. Their stars are still shining brightly. When Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler, and Draymond Green share the floor, Golden State outscores opponents by 7.0 points per 100 possessions, per NBA.com. For context, that net rating would rank fourth overall this season.
In other words, the Warriors aren't necessarily as far removed from contention as their 22-19 record would indicate. They just need better support to push them into that tier.
Jackson could be the perfect player to provide that oomph. His defensive protection could prove invaluable behind a Curry-Brandin Podziemski backcourt. Jackson's offense, meanwhile, might be just as helpful, since he'd pull some attention off of Curry and settle some of the scoring hierarchy behind him and Butler.
Memphis only knows whether this would be enough to let go of Jackson, but if the Grizzlies wind up going the hard-reset route, they might feel like they're getting as many as three building blocks, plus two future firsts from a franchise following the lead of three players who sit on the wrong side of 35.
It's at least enough to make the Grizzlies think, and that in turn makes it enough to give the Warriors hope of flipping Kuminga (and a lot more) for their proverbial missing piece.