Warriors forced to take notice after trade reject makes huge statement

The Golden State Warriors have already rejected a trade offer from the Sacramento Kings for Jonathan Kuminga, but they may have been forced to stand up and take notice after a major statement from Devin Carter on Saturday night.

Carter had an awful summer league opener against the Orlando Magic on Thursday, but bounced back in emphatic fashion in the Kings' dominant 109-92 victory over the Washington Wizards.

Devin Carter dropped 30 for the Kings at summer league on Saturday

The former 13th overall pick made his first six shots against the Wizards, dropping 21 first-half points in an aggressive display that had his team up 56-52. Carter would go onto finish with 30 points on an impressive 10-of-13 shooting from the floor, including 5-of-7 from 3-point range.

Perhaps most known for his defense at this point of his career, Carter also added three steals along with eight rebounds and three assists, finishing as a +14 in his 30 minutes during the 17-point victory.

The performance on Saturday comes after a rough summer league opener, with Carter limited to eight points, three rebounds, two assists and two steals on just 2-of-14 shooting from the floor which included missing all four of his 3-point attempts.

Carter has been a notable name among Kings and Warriors fans over the last fortnight, with reports that Sacramento had emerged as the strongest contender to acquire Kuminga as a restricted free agent.

Yet a lack of cap room means any Kuminga deal will have to come through a sign-and-trade, leaving Sacramento to reportedly offer a package of Carter, Dario Saric and two second-round picks which Golden State promptly rejected.

It's unlikely that Carter's performance against the Bulls really changes the Warriors opinion of the trade package if it was still on the table, but it would certainly force them to take notice nonetheless.

The Kings will find it difficult to acquire Kuminga now anyway, having absorbed former Warrior Dennis Schroder into their cap without sending out another salary. The sign-and-trade with the Detroit Pistons means Sacramento are now hard-capped at the first apron and are less than $10 million from it, only further complicating an already difficult situation given Golden State can only take back 50% of Kuminga's new contract in a deal.

It looks increasingly likely that the Warriors will bring Kuminga back on a short-term deal, leaving Carter to continue developing at the Kings after an injury-plagued rookie year that limited him to just 36 games.