Though it would have been a shock to suggest it a year ago, it’s increasingly looking possible that restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga might return to the Golden State Warriors on the qualifying offer. According to a report from ESPN’s Anthony Slater, Kuminga has told those in his camp that he prefers the qualifying offer to the latest offer that’s on the table from the Warriors.
On paper, there’s a dramatic fiscal difference between the two. The qualifying offer would pay Kuminga $7.9 million for the upcoming year, while Golden State’s current offer to the fifth-year wing is reportedly a two-year deal worth $45 million. Needless to say, it’s a little more complex beyond those basic numbers.
Kuminga — who went from likely to leave to a favorite to return — is apparently unhappy with the team-friendly structure of the Dubs’ offer. The current contract being floated by Mike Dunleavy Jr. and the rest of the front office is a one plus one, which would give Golden State the opportunity to opt out of the second year of the deal. They would also require Kuminga to not have a no-trade clause, so if they decide to deal him at the deadline — which feels very likely at this point — he would have no say in where he ends up.
With the qualifying offer, on the other hand, Kuminga could control his future. He would return to the Warriors for one final season, and, even though he’d be sacrificing a healthy chunk of money, he’d be betting on being able to make it up next year, when he’d be an unrestricted free agent, free to sign with any of the league’s 29 other teams.
While it feels like Kuminga would like to play elsewhere, it’s certainly not that simple. Slater reports that Kuminga is uninterested in such an easily-tradable contract because “the idea of signing up to be more easily traded midseason is unappealing” to Kuminga. It’s hard to blame Kuminga for that one, as he’ll be wanting to put his best foot forward heading into free agency, and it’s not always easy to do that following a midseason trade.
The qualifying offer would result in an odd situation for the Warriors. On the one hand, it would allow them to retain the athletic young lottery pick for a far more affordable rate than they initially expected. On the other hand, a one-year deal all but guarantees that the 2025-26 season would be Kuminga’s final one in a Warriors jersey, and also would diminish his value at the trade deadline.