Jonathan Kuminga. His name is bubbling up again on the trade boards as the Golden State Warriors look to move him. And who shows up in the rumor mill with interest? None other than the Phoenix Suns, one of the two teams that reached out about him this past offseason.
Here we are a couple months later, and per Arizona Sports’ John Gambadoro, the interest in Kuminga has cooled. What felt like a summer flirtation now reads more like a quiet walk in opposite directions.
Yes, the Suns could use help at power forward. That is where many people try to plug Kuminga into the roster. But as the season has taken shape and the culture has carved out its identity, the Suns have drifted farther from being a team that should chase Kuminga, and it sounds like that is exactly where things stand.
Why? It starts with the contract. After a long back-and-forth between Kuminga and Golden State this past offseason, the two sides landed on a deal worth two years and $46.8 million. The second year comes with a team option for the Warriors, which means they can walk away from it next summer if they choose. What serves their best interest until then? Trying to trade him while his value still holds and pull some kind of return for the asset.
The Suns pursued him this offseason, and the rumor mill had them ready to offer four years and $90 million. Kuminga wanted no part of that. He believed he was worth more than $22.5 million a year, so he took the shorter deal with Golden State, grabbed the same annual number, and set himself up to hit free agency again as soon as possible.
That is what makes Kuminga far less desirable now. Any team that trades for him is getting, at most, a two-year rental. Sure, you can try to sign him long-term if the fit feels right, although his priority has always tilted toward cashing in on his draft pedigree. That makes the odds slim. You could find yourself in the same spot the Warriors are in now, holding a talented player whose timeline, expectations, and financial ambitions do not line up, and scrambling to find a home for him or scrape together whatever assets you can.
You also have to take into account that this team has a real identity now. A culture you can feel when they walk onto the floor. Truth be told, Kuminga does not fit that culture.
This group is built around disruption. They defend with effort that shows up on every possession. They dig. They swarm. They never stop. And while people spent the summer trying to sell the idea that Kuminga could add shot creation, the other side of the ball tells the real story. His defensive effort is flat. Flat enough that he is not even in Golden State’s rotation half the time.
I am glad the Suns did not make that trade. I said it early and often: A little financial flexibility does not mean you sprint toward the first shiny name on the market. You look for someone who fits what you are building. Kuminga has never been that kind of player.
We will all keep an eye on whatever chaos the trade market brings. But based on the way the Suns have played this year, they are in no rush to empty the bank for the next star who winks in their direction. That feels like real growth from the Bradley Beal era, where the team saw a big name who wanted to be here and ignored everything else, from culture to contract to availability.