Fourth-year forward Jonathan Kuminga won’t sign a rookie scale extension with the Warriors before Monday’s deadline, according to reports from Shams Charania and Kendra Andrews of ESPN and Anthony Slater of The Athletic.
The two sides have discussed a possible extension since Kuminga became eligible in July, but never gained traction, per ESPN. With no deal in place, the 22-year-old remains on track to become a restricted free agent in the summer of 2025.
The Warriors and the forward were “never all that close” in their negotiations, according to Slater, who says Kuminga might’ve accepted a deal below his maximum but that Golden State didn’t increase its offer beyond something close to $30MM per year. A max deal would’ve been worth in the neighborhood of $43-45MM annually.
Kuminga enjoyed a breakout season in 2023/24, averaging 16.1 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game on .529/.321/.746 shooting in 74 appearances (26.3 MPG).
Kuminga enjoyed his best stretch of the year shortly after a report in January indicated he had lost faith in head coach Steve Kerr. The two men reportedly met to clear the air and Kuminga began playing a more significant role. From January 12 through March 26, he averaged 20.0 PPG, 5.4 RPG, and 2.7 APG on .547/.377/.778 shooting in 34 games before being hampered by knee tendinitis near the end of the season.
Charania reported last week that Kuminga is comfortable with the idea of betting on himself in a contract year. And while the Warriors have statistics that favorably compare his growth so far to that of stars like Kawhi Leonard, Pascal Siakam, and Jaylen Brown, they want to see how he continues to develop in 2024/25, sources tell ESPN. Golden State is also continuing to monitor his fit with Kerr, per Charania and Andrews.
After starting 46 of his 74 regular season outings last season, Kuminga is expected to be in the starting five for Wednesday’s opener vs. Portland, sources tell Slater. Team sources have described starting as “important” to the forward, according to Charania and Andrews, though he has told ESPN that he’d be OK with starting or coming off the bench.
Kuminga will earn approximately $7.6MM in the final year of his rookie scale contract and will remain trade-eligible this season before reaching restricted free agency next July.
The Warriors reached a three-year, $39MM deal with their other rookie scale extension candidate, Moses Moody, on Sunday.
The Poole rule for the warriors make the player earn it with back to back good years.
Exactly, Kuminga winning a title this year will get him that max.
Absolutely the right call with players who have demonstrated lower bbiq, defensive concerns, a lack of shooting, etc at times in the past.
To be clear, I’m not dunking on the guy. Just stating that it’s a good rule of thumb for players with higher risk profiles who are expected to command a lot of money.
Kawhi, Brown, is extremely flattering. Siakam may be a bit of a stretch, too. If this is how Golden State feels why so far apart in negotiations? I do think Siakam is someone Kuminga should model his game off, though.
They’re probably not sure that the attitude matches the physical gifts. Show me first because the first 3 years you didn’t.
I don’t know this to be true but it has to be what the Warriors are thinking especially after Jordan Poole. It’s possible he’s one of those guys who lets his athleticism carry him and before season 3 he didn’t put the work in? Just guessing on my part.
People seem to forget that Poole only had one good season. They were going to cut him in season 2. They sent him to Santa Cruz to work on his game.
Nrg82 , numbers show that Kuminga is ahead of those players at this stage. Did you know that?
link to goldenstateofmind.com
Maybe you should try reading comprehension instead of trying to trash the Warriors. They are comparing Kuminga’s game to anyone. They are talking about his growth and development as a player. Golden State is looking at how sustainable it is.
In my opinion this is okay. Match the market next summer if you want. In the meantime you’re getting a guy who’s going to ball out in a contract year.
He’ll do everything necessary. Be a good teammate, Excel on the floor, everything that’s needed. This is not a bad thing at all.
Gary, this is exactly what I said I wanted to happen when you asked me a while back: 1. Lock Moody up for pennies on the dollar as his star is rising too quickly. 2. Wait and see on JK, if he continues to improve or wins a title this year, give him the max then.
Love this team. Going to be a hilariously fun season! GSW is ba-ack!!!
arc89 , do you understand why it’s incorrect to say that the Warriors have not decided whether to sign Kuminga (and why this has nothing to do with Jordan Poole)? If you do understand and you don’t care, fine. Read no further.
GSW owns the rights to Kuminga. Not signing him would be giving them away for nothing, like lighting $200M in cash on fire. Unless he’s injured, Jonathan Kuminga will be signed by the Warriors, his value set by other team’s offers, at the end of the season.
There is no precedent (other than Lonzo Ball and the Pels, where there was concern about his injury history) for NBA teams not signing a highly valued extension-eligible player after the 4th year.
Signing JK doesn’t necessarily mean they want to keep him. If they don’t want to keep him, signing him means they can trade him.
It’s as simple as this in all cases (including Kuminga, Jalen Johnson, Alperen Sengun, etc): the player believes that his value will be significantly more after the season than the team’s current offer. And the team is willing to bet on the opposite.
Teams in the past used to try and f*** with each other more on RFAs back when more teams had cap space where a team could try and offer him a 2+1 with a max trade kicker so the GSW get him on a worse deal when they match, but it ties up your cap space till FA is pretty much over so teams are very unlikely to do it.
This does set up a situation where if they dont feel Kuminga fits or brings the team the value his market contract to this team they could sign and trade him to a team like DET/CHA for a player that fits better and picks.
@ Aristotle numbers? Please. Kuminga hasn’t shown a glimpse of Brown and kawhi on the defensive end. A golden state link? No thanks. Siakam is and has pretty much always been extremely versatile on the defensive end. Both ends, really. Far better rebounder, too. Kawhi, Brown and Siakam got paid off achievements already made while still being young. Kuminga is getting paid on promise….bit different.
You should try some reading comprehension. Why live off of the fumes of opinion? Learn something. The website just compares the growth of Kuminga to those comps. And he is on a similar track. Also, Kuminga is younger than those others. Learning something is nothing to be afraid of.
Lmao….just join Davey and Aristotle in saying you think warriors are winning the lot. Back up your mouth or stop talking. Maybe your comprehension is lacking? All those guys accomplished more individually and in their team environment at a young age. Got paid off the back of it. Kuminga is getting paid off possible potential. Doesn’t have the all round game as any of those guys at same age. Give him the Max for all I care. Good luck with that.
Huh? No player comes in to the NBA fully developed. All Rookie Max Extensions are based on the potential they showed in their 1st 3 seasons. Aristotle provided you with a link to a good analysis of Kuminga’s career and how he compares to Leonard and Siakam. But, you don’t want to look at it. It doesn’t bite.
Nrg82, I offered the numbers in support of Kuminga being ahead of those players in my first post via this link. I’ll provide it again:
link to goldenstateofmind.com
Davey J’s post is rather funny. If Moody is a rising star, why would his Agent “lock him up” for an extended period of time? If his longterm value is going to rise, why not go year-to-year. It sounds like his Reps don’t have much confidence in him.
Said the same thing yesterday. He’s basically arguing Moody and/or his agent are complete morons for taking this extension. That might even be an understatement.
Another funny thing. He was criticizing Kerr about under-utilizing Moody. He said Kerr should play Moody 16 minutes a game. Moody played 17.5 mpg last season. So, Davey wants to CUT Moody’s playing time.
Name a stronger 11 from 1-11 than Steph, Dray, Loon, Kuminga, Moody, JacksonDavis, Buddy, Podz, Melton, Wiggs and Slomo. Waters just was informed he won’t be in the opening season rotations, but I dont see anyone of that group getting cut.
I dont think GSW will use a 10 man rotation this year, it looks more like 11.
Also, Kerr just announced Steph will be on a 32 MPG limit for the early part of the year unless its late and close, I stated 33 in my “controversial” mins breakdown (that wasnt controversial at all, its just factual). So Gary, that 1 minute can go to Buddy instead of Moody so Buddy plays 1 more minute than Moody, lol
Overall mixed emotions because we all dont kmow what this means or Warriors are thinking.
1) Are Warriors just trying to motivate him to earn max?
2) Do the Warriors want to be remain flexible for potential mid season trade which is a vote of no confidence
3) Warriors either did a poor job of drafting or developing 1st round picks. There is no way to get around this. Wiseman, Kuminga, Moody, Baldwin, Poole, etc. Who is the last 1st that made it???? Looney?
4) Players who received extensions like Suggs, Sengun, Johnson, etc. All these guys WOULD NOT have received those extensions if they were drafted by Warriors.
5) Maybe it’s the price you pay for being a contender or dynasty but very poor culture of developing or empowering young players. I am still not sure if they should have given up on Poole even though he is playing trrribly in WA.
6) What’s the future?? Will it be Kuminga’s team? Will Curry really retire as Warrior? Dray? Will there be a blockbuster trade? No easy answers and future looks very shaky.
Excellent points Michol. Every single one of them.
I really do think the Warriors will hang their hat on defense this season. That will help them win games in my opinion, whereas they haven’t had a defensive team since the Iguodala days.
Then If Melton and Buddy Hield and Podski and Wiggins can shoot it well enough, I think they’re a playoff team. If those guys have a drop in attitude and effort because they’re a sub .500 team, then it’s time to play the young guys and this season is toast. But I don’t think the Warriors would dare pick up veteran guys who would be in danger of that.
I’m optimistic on the year even though your questions above are legitimate and somewhat of a cloud over the team, at least for the time being. But we know winning is the elixir to all sour situations.
Michol , I think you have a great handle on all this (because, of course, I happen to agree). You might also have mentioned the recurring pattern of strained relationships between Kerr and young players (along with their agents).
.
A point in Kerr’s defense: contenders can’t afford to develop young players on the job. As a high lottery pick, you don’t want to go to a good team. Exhibit I: Jonathan Kuminga. Exhibit II: Moses Moody. Exhibit III: check out the table at the bottom of this post.
So, the Warriors/Kerr now have a reputation amongst the agencies as THE worst team in the league for young players (I can give sources). But Kerr has 4 ‘Chips and Steph’s support, and thus no motivation to change.
IMO, there is zero chance Lakob trades Kuminga or Podz. I’ve heard Lakob say twice on live interviews since last March that if Kuminga were on a losing team he’d be in a better contract situation… which happens to be exactly the justification offered by Kuminga for not signing.
1 Cunningham 5yr/$45M/$225M
2 Green 3yr/$35M/$105M
3 Mobley 5yr/$45M/$225M
4 Barnes 5yr/$45M/$225M
5 Suggs 5yr/$30M/$150M
6 Giddy –
7 Kuminga –
8 Wagner 5yr/$45M/$225
14 Moody 3yr/$13/$39M
15 Kispert 4yr/$14/$56M
16 Sengun 5yr/$35M/$185M
17 Murphy 4yr/$28M/$112M
20 JJohnson 5yr/$30M/$150M
Warriors did an astrocious job with Wiseman too. Why did they draft him?? That was the beginning of the end of the dynasty. (No more light years ahead) :(
They drafted Wiseman because he has a lot of raw talent. And anyone who knows anything about drafting and developing talent, big men take the longest. This has been the rule decades. All dynasties come to an end. Name one that has gone on for decades.
MIchol , you ask a great question. I’ll tell you what I know, all of which is out there, but few are interested.
The problem at the time of Wiseman’s drafting, which Kerr has acknowledged several times with a self-awareness that I admire, is that the staff had no prior experience in player development, especially with the raw, high-potential, teen-aged (18yr-19yr old) type like Wiseman and Kuminga.
Many NBA teams — notably, Boston, San Antonio, and Toronto — had an impressive dedicated group in place for long-term player development. It took the failures with Wiseman in 2020-21 along with the Kuminga and Moody lottery picks in June 2021 to spur the Lakobs to invest heavily in recruiting Jamah Mahlalela from Toronto to create a new group.
But all that blew up in the 2022-23 season. Mahlalela returned to the Raptors. Dumping Wiseman, Poole, PBJ and Hollins in a 3 month span in spring 2023 marked the sudden end of a grand project.
2023-24 saw further problems, with both Moody’s family/agents (Clutch) and Kuminga’s agents publicly “leaking” their displeasure, presumably in hope of forcing a trade… and for good reason: the difference between starting on a bad team and sitting on the bench for the Warriors could be $100M. These agents would likely agree on your comments re Suggs and Sengun.
You are completely ignoring a lot things in bashing the Warriors. Why?
James Wiseman is an incredible physical talent. 7 ft, good weight, size and strength, and can run the floor like a guard. But he didn’t have it between the ears and he doesn’t have it between the ears.
He’s been healthy the last two or three seasons since leaving the Warriors and hasn’t been able to stick or get decent rotation playing time.
He’s a young likable kid who works hard and you only want the best for him. He’s a good teammate and never complains. Multiple injuries, sent to the G league, ride the bench, no complaints at all. You pull for a kid like this. Everyone does.
So when the team and Steve Kerr are asked about James Wiseman, THEY take the bullet, THEY take the hit and say it’s their fault. There’s no way they’ll blame James for his failure to be an NBA player. There’s no way they’ll say he doesn’t have what it takes.
They want to give him a second chance and wherever that may be in the league. They won’t be the team that throws him under the bus because he can’t figure out NBA defensive schemes.
James Wiseman is also a tragic result of the horrible cov*d 2-year ordeal. The young man lost 2 years of development with the Warriors. Working out on your own and the Cov*d 6 ft rule didn’t help any athlete.
Then perhaps the biggest roadblock to James Wiseman’s chance at becoming an NBA player was his injuries. Especially the knee, he couldn’t run, he couldn’t gain his wind or endurance. Just a bad situation all around.
But I guess he’s with the Pacers now. Good luck to a great young man who won’t let adversity keep him down.
And kudos to the Warriors and Steve Kerr for taking the blame for this kid not developing as many had hoped. We can all see he doesn’t know what he’s doing out there and he’s lacking basketball IQ but you won’t hear a peep of that from the Golden State warriors.
What completely ridiculous statements. It is a bunch of BS if you think you know what Sengun, Suggs etc would have done. That is completely idiotic.
It is dumb to say that the Warriors have done a poor job a drafting and developing players. Any team, in any sport, that has been dominant for a decade, is not going to have their pick of the best young players. Name one team that has been dominant decade-after-decade-after-decade. There is a reason why the NBA draft only has two rounds.
Giants74 said:
> It is a bunch of BS if you think you know what
> Sengun, Suggs etc would have done. That is
> completely idiotic.
I’ll defend these comments of MIchol. Unlike with the Warriors, Sengun and Suggs benefited as:
– the develoment of young players was Houston’s & Orlando’s highest priority, before, even, winning
– they started as rookies, accumulating stats sized by starter minutes
– they could play freely, without fear that mistakes would result in benching or DNP’s.
– after 3 years, their stats, so important to getting rookie extensions reflect 3 years of starting
By contrast, the Warriors priority is winning ONLY, with NO value placed on player development. Ever. If that sounds extreme, consider:
1) For the 2021 FRP’s eligible for rookie extensions, Kuminga and Moody were the only ones that have never been starters.
2) In 2023-24, Kuminga’s and Moody’s third year, they were still repeatedly benched and, even, DNP’d, as their minutes were regularly given to 2-way players such as Quinones and Santos (like Lamb and Jerome the previous season).
3) in this season, which Lakob and Dunleavy have declared as a rebuilding year, Kerr refuses to this moment to commit to Kuminga being a starter, or, to giving a rotation spot to 1st Team All-Rookie Podziemski, or, even, to newly-extended Moses Moody. Even in a rebuilding year, our heralded young isn’t preferred to players like Melton and GP2 that won’t be back next year.
It’s all part of the Warriors way, and that wins championships, which is what matters most. But, it’s also why we’re bad at player development and player retention.
If Suggs and Sengun had been drafted by the Warriors, they’d have similar frustrations as Kuminga and Moody.
Jesus, seriously? Have you looked at Houston’s and Orlando’s records over the past decade. They had no choice but to focus on player development. They certainly weren’t winning anything. Remember. The Warriors were defending a title just two seasons ago. It has been over a decade for Houston and Orlando.
The Warriors went into rebuild mode the second Klay went down a second time. They definitely didn’t expect to win in 22.
Kuminga’s frustration with Kerr was completely over blown. They sat down and talked about why didn’t get more playing time. They hashed out plan to get him into the starting lineup. And guess what, he is in the starting lineup.
It also makes sense for them to wait on an extension for Kuminga. He is the youngest of his draft class. He also had the least amount of development coming into the league. He basically went from High School to the NBA. Sengun played professionally 3 years before he was drafted. It was known that Poole had a maturity problem before he was drafted. Letting JK grow a bit can only help him.
Giants74 , First, the Warriors are not choosing to wait until next year to offer Kuminga an extension. They offered him something in the $30M range, but he wants more. That’s been reported by several sources.
More important, based on your response, I’m assuming you read only the first 1/3 of my post because, IMO, what you say directly contradicts the facts I cite in the rest of it:
>>
By contrast, the Warriors priority is winning ONLY, with NO value placed on player development. Ever. If that sounds extreme, consider:
1) For the 2021 FRP’s eligible for rookie extensions, Kuminga and Moody were the only ones that have never been starters.
2) In 2023-24, Kuminga’s and Moody’s third year, they were still repeatedly benched and, even, DNP’d, as their minutes were regularly given to 2-way players such as Quinones and Santos (like Lamb and Jerome the previous season).
3) in this season, which Lakob and Dunleavy have declared as a rebuilding year, Kerr refuses to this moment to commit to Kuminga being a starter, or, to giving a rotation spot to 1st Team All-Rookie Podziemski, or, even, to newly-extended Moses Moody. Even in a rebuilding year, our heralded young isn’t preferred to players like Melton and GP2 that won’t be back next year.
Honestly would’ve been shocked if Kuminga had been extended. I guess he could’ve signed a deal similar to Jalen Green which I see as sort of a win-win for both sides, but he always seemed intent on testing the market and may have more upside if the shooting and/or defense ever come around. Probably the right as unless he complete stagnates he’d still be line for a nice pay raise.
I admire his cojones. You see Moody cave for 13 million a year and JK won’t answer the phone for 30. That’s big baller brand for sure. I love it, he’s going to come out and play his assets off and that will benefit the Warriors in a huge way.
Plus if he does go for 25 a game and make the All-Star team, the Warriors have no problem giving a guy the money he deserves. They’re not cheap by any stretch of the imagination and we’ve seen it the last 10 years. I think it’s win-win.
I agree, if the broken english in my last sentence didn’t make that clear lol. Think this was the right call by both parties.
Shea, i don’t think you’re right. Warriors worked hard on a 5 year deal for Kuminga according to all the media outlets. Listening to Bay Area radio, The Game, Kuminga was reportedly offered 5 years in the “low 30’s”.
Ari I don’t think that’s what Shea said. I think JK is shooting for MORE money than the low 30’s. I think he’s betting on himself to get something a lot more. I agree with Shea and that lines up with what you’re saying Ari. I don’t see a disagreement.
Gary and Shea , sorry, then I misunderstood Shea.
We’re all in agreement about what happened, based on the reports. Kuminga was offered $30 or low $30s, depending on who you listen to, but he wanted significantly more.
Yes, I believe that to be correct.
2021 NBA 1st Round Picks Get The Bag!
1 Cunningham 5yr/$45M/$225M
2 Green 3yr/$35M/$105M
3 Mobley 5yr/$45M/$225M
4 Barnes 5yr/$45M/$225M
5 Suggs 5yr/$30M/$150M
6 Giddy –
7 Kuminga –
8 Wagner 5yr/$45M/$225
14 Moody 3yr/$13/$39M
15 Kispert 4yr/$14/$56M
16 Sengun 5yr/$35M/$185M
17 Murphy 4yr/$28M/$112M
20 JJohnson 5yr/$30M/$150M
Why would anybody want to be drafted by the Warriors?
Why wouldn’t they? Kerr was voted one of the 15 greatest coaches in NBA history. They could easily do worse.
Giants74 ,
both of these can be true about GSW:
1. The best NBA franchise of the past decade
2. The worst team to be drafted by
both of these can be true about Steve Kerr
1. elite at coaching star players
2. disliked by young players
What young players dislike Steve Kerr? Name them.
“One of the things I that I like about this organization so much is the people here,” Moody said before listing names like Kerr, Curry, Draymond Green and general manager Mike Dunleavy “For them to have those feelings and have those things to say about me is really cool.”
Moody said this just today.
Where do you get this idea that he hates Steve Kerr?
Giants74 , I respect your takes very much, but I’m going to decline to pursue this one with you because you appear to have an emotional investment in Kerr that prevents you from acknowledging facts.
Nothing I have said is news. Moody’s camp last year complained to the team, and Clutch leaked it. That was reported here and elsewhere. The same holds for Kuminga. If you don’t think young players and their agents rankle over the single biggest opportunity to get their bag, fine.
I wonder what free agency will be next year…
These kind of extensions have been making free agency boring…