Jonathan Kuminga Signs with the Warriors and Focuses on the Future
After three months of tense negotiations during free agency, Golden State Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga signed his contract. The deal was finalized in Cleveland on Tuesday night, and the player flew to San Francisco on Wednesday to join the team at practice on Thursday afternoon. The next question facing the Warriors is Kuminga’s immediate adaptation to the main mission: elevating the Warriors to contention for the title before the end of the Steph Curry, Draymond Green, and Jimmy Butler era. Coach Steve Kerr will be in charge of guiding Kuminga back to the team. Kerr reiterated twice after Wednesday’s practice that he maintains a good personal relationship with Kuminga and does not believe the player is the type to “come and dismantle the team”.Kuminga spent the offseason seeking a better contract or a sign-and-trade deal to another team. He made it clear that he believed his career could flourish with more opportunities elsewhere. However, the restricted free agency dynamic brought him back to the Warriors on a two-year, $48.5 million contract, which includes a team option for the second season and a 15% trade bonus. Kuminga’s agent, Aaron Turner, made it clear that Kuminga was looking for a player option. During the negotiations, both parties acknowledged the uncomfortable situation and finally arrived at this contract structure because it is designed to be easier to move starting January 15, when Kuminga will become eligible to be traded again.Jimmy is an alpha. Steph and Draymond are alphas. They run that locker room. I’m not worried about anything.
Steve Kerr
Turner made public many of the details of the negotiations, including a 40-minute podcast with ESPN’s Hoop Collective that revealed the transparent nature of the sign-and-trade contract. Dunleavy stated that he would keep his own version of the “behind closed doors” negotiations. Kerr was in contact with Kuminga during the process, checking on the situation of the forward. However, Kerr, former general manager in Phoenix, stayed out of the contractual part of the conversations.We feel we have a player who can be really good. I don’t think there’s a need to make a move. Now, we’ll see how the season unfolds. At this time last year, I would have said we need to improve. I don’t feel that right now. It could change. We have a lot of players on the team who have value across the league and could be traded, but I think the structure is more what works for us and for the player.
Mike Dunleavy
I told [Dunleavy] that there was a reason why I hated being a general manager. Those 92 days were a great example of that. I prefer to be a coach and let management handle everything related to contracts.
Steve Kerr
Now, the work falls on Kerr, who has rotated Kuminga in and out of his rotation for four seasons. Kerr said he plans to have a long conversation with Kuminga in the coming days to discuss what happened this summer, the basketball scars of the previous four seasons, and what awaits him.
It may not be the contract he expected, but it’s money that will change his life. The idea is to help him improve, to become the player he can be and to sign some more contracts. That’s what he has to focus on and I have to focus on: the improvement part. That’s what has held him back: what we need versus what he wants to do. It’s undeniable that that has been a problem.
Steve Kerr
