As the Golden State Warriors negotiated with restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga this offseason, they held strong to their demand that a team option (rather than a player option) be included in the deal as a direct result of their hope to move the contract at some point this season.
Now, although Kuminga returns nominally to the rotation, the organization will likely begin shopping him as soon as they are able to, and, according to NBA Analyst Amin Elhassan on the most recent episode of the Kevin O'Connor Show, they must specfically seek to bring back experienced veterans in such a deal.
While the team does already have four starters over the age of 35, their limited championship window will not allow them to experiment any longer with young talent. Instead, they must seek out reliable players to supplement Stephen Curry, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green as they attempt to eke out one more championship run.
The Warriors need to be seeking out more veteran talent this season in any potential Jonathan Kuminga move
In many ways, Golden State has already made their intentions for their roster clear throughout this offseason. Although they will still rely on relatively young players such as Brandin Podziemski and Moses Moody to take on significant roles in the rotation, almost all of their energy this offseason was focused upon bringing in veterans such as Al Horford and De'Anthony Melton who can gel quickly around Curry and Butler.
Therefore, Elhassan's belief that they should pursue more of that same talent in a Kuminga trade is not that far off of what the Warriors' goal likely is: "They've got to get some more of those weird, in- between young vets: not too young to not know how the game is played but not too old to where [they're] dealing with [their] injury issues as well."
This, certainly, is a delicate balance to strike in the NBA. Few and far between are the players who can simultaneously adapt quickly to multiple systems, can remain relatively healthy, and are available on the trade market for less than the $22.5 million that Kuminga is owed this year.
To make matters more dicey, Golden State declined a trade offer this summer from the Sacramento Kings that would have netted them Malik Monk (a player that would have almost perfectly fit this description) as a result of their belief that he would not fit into the team's Curry-centric offensive scheme.
In many senses, Elhassan is right. If Kuminga is going to be moved this season, the Warriors must take advantage of whatever opportunity gets them even marginally closer to winning a championship rather than worrying about future dividends to be paid. Yet, netting veteran talent in exchange for Kuminga could prove to be much more difficult than it sounds when it's all said and done.