3 reasons why Warriors must meet Jonathan Kuminga’s demands 

The Golden State Warriors are approaching concerning territory as the team’s contract situation with Jonathan Kuminga remains unresolved, a few weeks away from their first preseason game. The Warriors have presented multiple offers to the 22-year-old forward throughout free agency, but they look no closer to reaching an agreement.

Golden State will be unable to make any moves in free agency until the situation with Kuminga is resolved. To put the dire situation into perspective, the team only has nine out of 15 roster spots filled with the preseason tipping off on Oct. 5.

Fans have grown restless over the past months and would be happy to see the Warriors move on from Kuminga. With the way the situation has unfolded, their relationship appears strained, but at this stage of free agency, Golden State might regret moving on from the young forward.

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Let us take a look at three reasons why the Warriors must meet Jonathan Kuminga’s demands.

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3 reasons the Golden State Warriors must meet Jonathan Kuminga’s demands

1) Similar to Deandre Ayton’s situation with the Suns (2022)

Portland Trail Blazers v Golden State Warriors - Source: Getty

The Warriors’ situation with Kuminga is similar to what the Phoenix Suns went through with Deandre Ayton in 2022. Entering the 2022 season, Ayton had wanted a max rookie extension from the Suns, a deal that players from his class like Luka Doncic and Trae Young had received.

Unlike the Dallas Mavericks and the Atlanta Hawks, the Suns weren’t willing to sign Ayton to a similar deal, instead choosing to match the Indiana Pacers’ four-year, $133 million offer in free agency. As a restricted free agent, Ayton had no option but to return to Phoenix.

However, bringing back an unhappy player was likely not the move as the Suns crashed out of the conference semifinals that season after reaching the NBA Finals in 2021. The team’s collapse was followed by multiple reports of locker room tension due to the relationship between Phoenix and Ayton.

The Suns ultimately moved on from the former No. 1 pick, trading him to the Portland Trail Blazers in 2023. If the Warriors don’t meet Jonathan Kuminga’s demands and bring him back in a similar fashion, it could do more harm than good to the team.

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2) No better upgrade available

Another reason why the Warriors should agree to Kuminga’s demands is the lack of replacements in free agency. With the preseason just a couple of weeks away, all the quality players on the market have already been signed by other teams.

The Warriors will be hard-pressed to find a replacement for Kuminga, who averaged 15.3 points and 4.6 rebounds for the team last season. His two-way play and combination of size and athleticism would've been hard to replace at the start of free agency, let alone near the end. As such, bringing the forward back makes the most sense.

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3) Steph Curry, Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green reportedly want Kuminga back

Golden State Warriors v Orlando Magic - Source: Getty

According to Brett Siegel of Clutch Points, the Warriors' three future Hall of Famers, Curry, Butler and Green, have urged the team to reach an agreement with Jonathan Kuminga. Curry, who will be 38 by the end of 2025-26, has limited time left to add another championship to his illustrious resume.

The team is far from looking like contenders and won’t make any progress in that direction until Kuminga’s contract issues are resolved. With this in mind, Steph Curry, Butler and Green have reportedly been urging the team to resolve Kuminga’s contract issues since August.

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With all the cards seemingly stacked against them, the Golden State Warriors must hurry and close the book on Jonathan Kuminga’s restricted free agency.

Edited by Sameer Khan