Having eventually signed Jonathan Kuminga to a two-year, $48.5 million contract with a second year team option, trade speculation surrounding the Golden State Warriors is bound to be significant even before the young forward is officially eligible to be moved on January 15.
When that date passes the Warriors will be able to explore trades for Kuminga without the hindrance of the base-year compensation rules they faced this offseason, but that doesn't necessarily mean they'll be able to go out and target absolutely anyone.
The Warriors won't be able to acquire Lauri Markkanen
Utah Jazz forward Lauri Markkanen has been a dream trade target for Golden State in the past, and most specifically during the 2024 offseason where there were negotiations between both teams and a period where it looked like the 2023 All-Star could be heading to the Bay Area.
That ultimately didn't take place as Markkanen re-negotiated and extended his contract with the Jazz, only for trade speculation to continue this offseason as Utah's rebuild continues. The idea of flipping Kuminga for Markkanen would be ideal for the Warriors, but Kuminga's new contract still falls well short of making it work as The Ringer's Zach Lowe recently outlined on his podcast.
"Markkanen has been a dream trade target for the Warriors. They've tried to get him. Fitting his $45 million salary now, he was a dream trade target before they got Jimmy Butler on a $50 something million salary, so it's just hard," Lowe said.
Kuminga will only make about half of what Markkanen will this season, making it essentially impossible for Golden State unless they're also willing to trade veteran forward Draymond Green -- which would seem very unlikely.
There's also real questions on how interested the Warriors would even be in Markkanen anyway on his new contract, with the Finnish international a much different proposition on a four-year, $195.9 million deal as opposed to the $18 million he was on when the teams were in trade negotiations last year.
Markkanen's value took a bit of a hit last season due to the contract, the fact he only appeared in 47 games, and given his numbers dipped to 19.0 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game on 42.3% shooting from the floor and 34.6% from 3-point range.
With the contracts of Kuminga, Moses Moody and Buddy Hield, Golden State could perhaps stretch out to acquiring a $40 million player. Anyone beyond that is impractical unless Green or Jimmy Butler are on the table, making it much more likely that the Warriors search for a player making between $20-30 million depending on how the season unfolds.