The Portland Trail Blazers are emerging as a potential suitor for Jonathan Kuminga, which if true opens up a painfully obvious new trade target for the Golden State Warriors.
Jerami Grant has been a name seldom mentioned as a possible Warrior trade target, but that could change if Portland's interest in Kuminga materializes further once the young forward officially becomes eligible to be moved on January 15.
Warriors have painfully obvious trade target in Jerami Grant
According to Kevin O'Connor of Yahoo Sports on Monday, the Trail Blazers, New Orleans Pelicans and Washington Wizards, along with a recently mentioned team in the Dallas Mavericks, all have some level of interest in Kuminga leading up to the mid-season trade deadline.
O'Connor identified Grant and Jrue Holiday as veteran players Golden State could target in a trade with the Trail Blazers, but the size of the former clearly makes him a more viable option rather than acquiring another guard.
Grant has averaged an even 20.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists in 26 games this season, shooting 43.6% from the floor and an efficient 38.9% from 3-point range on a career-high 6.4 attempts per game.
After actually starting the season in a bench role, Grant returned to the starting lineup and has been productive before missing the past nine games due to achilles tendinitis. That injury concern, combined with his overall stature as a player, means that the 31-year-old shouldn't be Golden State's primary target by any means.
The Warriors should absolutely be targeting a more difference-making player such as Trey Murphy II or Michael Porter Jr. The consideration of trading Draymond Green in a deal for Anthony Davis should also be strongly thought through before any eye turns towards Grant.
However, if Golden State decide that those players aren't realistic, or that they don't want to give up significant draft assets, then that's when Grant becomes an obvious option before the deadline.
At the very least it's a big, 6'7" forward who could play considerable minutes and be a potential third scorer. If the cost of that is merely Jonathan Kuminga and Buddy Hield, with no draft capital involved, then it's an obvious rotation upgrade to consider.
The more exciting news from this report is that Kuminga's market actually remains reasonably healthy, at least for someone making $22.5 million who has now been out of the rotation for 11 of the past 12 games. That should give the Warriors no shortage of options before the deadline, including a potential deal with the Trail Blazers that sends Grant to the Bay.