The Golden State Warriors have one imperative between now and the Feb. 6 trade deadline: trade Jonathan Kuminga.
It's not as though this is an easy task. Kuminga has played just nine minutes since Dec. 7 after being benched by Steve Kerr, and his recent trade demand leaves very little leverage for the Warriors to operate with.
At this point, it would be considered a success if they are able to even acquire one difference-making player with his contract.
Given what they went through this past offseason and the offers they declined to get to this point, this result would still be a, frankly, painful resolution to the Kuminga saga. Recently, Michael Scotto of HoopsHype revealed just how disastrous it could truly be.
"[The Kings] are now unwilling to part with a first-round pick and would likely need a third team to ultimately acquire Kuminga, with the Warriors remaining uninterested in acquiring Monk and preferring expiring contracts, HoopsHype has learned. "Michael Scotto
The Sacramento Kings, who have been the primary Kuminga suitor over the past several months, are reportedly no longer willing to part with any first-round picks in a potential trade for the young forward. How could the Warriors have let it get to this point?
Even the most zealous Kuminga suitor is backing off, and the Warriors are in trouble
This past offseason, Golden State rebuffed at least concrete offers for Kuminga from at least two teams, the more desirable of which was Sacramento's.
The Kings offered Malik Monk and a protected first-round pick in exchange for Kuminga's contract, but the Warriors felt they could get a higher return once the season began as a result of salary-matching rules. Sign-and-trades only count for half of the player's salary for salary-matching purposes.
Golden State, moreover, did not have distinct interest in Monk and wanted multiple unprotected first-round picks for Kuminga. At the time, that felt realistic even if the price was a little high.
Now, that threshold feels so far out of reach.
Not only has the Kings' stance changed, but the Warriors' disinterest in Monk has not wavered, meaning that a third team would likely need to get involved to even pull off a trade between the two parties.
There are other options for Golden State to move Kuminga, but they remain unclear. Even their most heavily-rumored trade target, Michael Porter Jr., becomes difficult to acquire given the Brooklyn Nets' disinterest in Kuminga.
The Warriors may have played themselves by not pulling the trigger on a deal this past offseason, and they may pay the price over the coming weeks.