We all know the latest update on Jonathan Kuminga's situation with the Golden State Warriors by now — it was announced earlier this week that the team has offered him a three-year, $75.2 million contract with a team option on the final year. Overall, this was a solid compromise that prevented the team from overspending on a guy as unproven as Kuminga.
From JK's perspective, this offer is still not quite what he's looking for. It's still a pretty lucrative offer, all things considered. Should he accept it, he'd be earning a guaranteed $48.3 million over the course of the first two seasons he'd be under contract. That's more than his career earnings to this point.
But what Kuminga primarily wants is an opportunity for a bigger role, and he's just in a really tough spot to actually earn something like that with this Warriors team. He's playing behind Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green. No matter how much better he got over the course of the summer, it's hard to see him earning minutes over those veterans under any circumstances.
It seems more likely that Kuminga would have taken this particular offer had that third year on the contract not been a team option. That seems to signal that the Warriors view him more as a trade piece than as a real member of their core moving forward.
This contract offer wouldn't restrict the Warriors' finances
Here's the thing — I honestly believe that's the correct view of Kuminga as a player at this point in time. JK is going to feel frustrated that he's not valued more and will continue to desire the kind of role where he can really free-wheel and show what he's made of. I get all that, and I'm not even saying he's wrong for feeling that way. It's totally natural to feel like you're on the cusp of breaking out when you're in his position.
But if we consider how much Kuminga still has to prove and what Golden State's current position is as a contender in the Western Conference, it makes a ton of sense for them to be hesitant to shell out the big bucks to him. The Warriors unfortunately don't have the luxury of being able to worry about a second hypothetical timeline where Kuminga becomes a star. They have to focus on the here and now, or they'll waste the tail end of Stephen Curry's career.
Being a bit more conservative with these dealings, even after an extended stalemate with Kuminga, is honestly the right move. The front office could have easily caved and said, 'You know what? This has gone on long enough. It's the middle of September, let's just offer Kuminga what he wants and be done with it.' But I think they were much wiser to choose the alternative option here.
Had the Warriors just given in and granted Jonathan Kuminga a massive payday, it would have put them in an even worse financial situation going forward. This was the right move for now. Let JK figure out what he needs to do, and don't be regretful that you only made a compromise on his contract offer. In the end, losing him for nothing wouldn't be fun, but it's still better than being stuck paying way too much for a guy who may or may not become something super meaningful in this league.