Report: Warriors DARING Jonathan Kuminga To Accept Deal

Report: Warriors DARING Jonathan Kuminga To Accept Deal

The Golden State Warriors are daring Jonathan Kamea to pick up his qualifying offer. Will he do it? I’m Trevor Lane. This is the Basketball Bulletin. Make sure you subscribe right here to the channel. Turn on those notifications as well. So important. I’m telling you everybody, so important that you hit that subscribe button. Don’t forget to do that. Make sure you subscribe. That way you stay up to date on all of the latest. Joining me is Donnie Freeman. this this staring contest, standoff, whatever we want to call it, between Jonathan Kaminga and the Golden State Warriors, it’s hitting another level and getting to a point where the Warriors are being incredibly brazen about this. They don’t believe that Jonathan Kaminga is actually willing to pick up the qualifying offer. They are essentially daring him to do it. Yeah. because if they’re going to remove other avenues for him to go elsewhere, he doesn’t have a lot of opportunities other than to pick that up or sign whatever they’re offering him, which he also apparently doesn’t want to do. So, yeah, I think for them they’re also like, “Yeah, this is druggone a while. We have other moves we need to make. We have to get this done to get to those other moves. So, let’s try to figure this out.” But absolutely, this is the story that just just keeps on giving. Like, it doesn’t stop. We’re feels like every other day we got something new with this. This is that scene in an action movie where where somebody’s pointing a gun at like at somebody else and that and that person is screaming, “Do it, do it.” Like daring them, right? That’s what the Warriors are doing to Jonathan Kaminga right now. So here’s this is from Tim Kawakami. The word I got when I checked in with the Warriors source on Sunday. Kaminga won’t be traded this summer. He’ll be back on the Warriors roster to start the season. It’ll either come when he signs the Warriors offer or accepts the $7.9 million one-year qualifying offer. So, keep in mind, the Warriors offer rumored to be a two-year deal, a team option on the second year worth somewhere over 20 million, probably about $45 million combined is what we’ve heard. And a requirement of that offer would be that Jonathan Kaminga waves the inherent no trade clause that would come with that because the league would view that as a one-year deal. Effectively, the Warriors are saying, “We’re going to refuse to trade you. You can either get a two-year deal that’s very team friendly so that we can trade you or you could play for the qualifying offer. Those are your options. We’re not going to send you where you want to go. We won’t send you to Sacramento. We won’t send you to Phoenix.” That is the messaging. First of all, Donnie, do you buy this from the Warriors or is this the Warriors just trying to force Jonathan Kaminga’s hand? Do you think this is really where where the Warriors are at in terms of their stance? Yeah, I I I think that that’s I maybe it’s somewhere in the middle, but I do think that there’s a pretty good chance that if the right offer comes along, they’ll be willing to do it uh just to get things done. But the right the right trade, you mean? Yeah, the right trade offer comes along that I think there’s a good chance that they’d be willing to do it. But I don’t know if that’s exact. Like I could go either way with this one for sure. So, you’ve got uh Jonathan Kaminga right now has that that qualifying offer sitting there. And if he signs that, in my opinion, this is a disaster for the Warriors. If he signs the qualifying offer, he would have a no trade clause and he would be an unrestricted free agent next summer. However, the problem with this is, and this is part of why I think the Warriors are effectively daring him to take this qualifying off, say, “Hey, sign our team friendly contract. We’re not willing to give you more money. sign our team friendly contract so we can get a bunch back for you in a trade or sign that qualifying offer because if you are a Jonathan Kaminga and you’ve signed the qualifying offer and you’re on a team that you don’t want to be on because you don’t feel like they’re using you properly, what’s your value going to be next summer when you play out the one year on the qualifying offer for a team that you don’t want to be on because they’re not using you properly. What What’s your value gonna be? Yeah. out there in free agency if you just have a so year because you don’t trust the Warriors to actually use you. Now, if Jonathan Kaminga knew, hey, the Warriors are locked in. They may not want to give me the money that that I want, but there but I’m playing 35 minutes a night every single night. I’m getting 15 shots up a night every single night. Yeah, that’s this is probably this is a different story. But I think there’s an element here where Kaminga doesn’t trust that the Warriors are actually going to use him in a way that will allow him to showcase himself. so that he can get paid next summer. I think that gets wrapped up in all this too. Yeah, there’s some inherent risks with uh a lot of the different ways that you can handle this. If you’re Jonathan Kaminga, for example, everything you just explained, you know, he’d be on that salary and if he’s not able to show what he wants to show out there, all of a sudden he is absolutely in a contract year and he’s going to try to reup somewhere and they may say, “Hey, well, we have some questions. Do you want to take a lesser deal, shorter deal, etc.” Uh, or also if you’re Jonathan, if you were to take the deal that’s on the table for the Warriors at a more teamfriendly number, there’s also the possibility that while a team that would be targeting you would be a team that most likely would want you as part of their core or things like that, but there’s a possibility they send you somewhere that’s not a good fit or a team that may have a log jam at your position as well if you get traded out there. So, that’s where it’s just there there’s concern if you’re Jonathan on these deals that you potentially would be signing. I think that the best of both worlds would potentially be a short-term deal but with a player option but they don’t want to do that right so they haven’t been able to meet there but I think that would probably be the best of both worlds because if you’re Jonathan if in that case you could you know opt out and then re-up and uh go from there if you wanted to do that but they want to have that team control they want to have him at a good number they don’t want to overpay or anything like that so that he is an asset for them and that’s understandable from the franchise perspective but it’s just not pro Kuminga in this case and you have this situation where both of these parties are looking out for themselves specifically and I don’t know if there’s a perfect way to get this done other than what I think I suggested. Yeah, they’re they’re trying to get him on as team friendly a contract as possible so that he has as trade valuable as as possible here. Now, if you’re Kaminga, you don’t care about that. You don’t you don’t want them to to be able to trade you what the Warriors get back from you. you don’t care about that like so obviously he wants to maximize what he can do in terms of role and and revenue and it doesn’t seem like either of those things are happening for the Warriors right now. Now as Kawakami notes and we kind of alluded to this uh we can all read somewhere most of this as the Warriors positioning in l of making a final push for a more favorable sign and trade agreement. So it’s not just that side of it. There is the Kaminga we don’t believe. And by the way, Kaminga did have a post on Instagram the other day where he said something to the effect I will always bet on myself. The Warriors very clearly don’t believe that he will actually do it. They’re they don’t believe that he will actually take the qualifying offer. But there’s also an element to this of their they’re walking away from the table in terms of negotiating with the Kings and with the Suns on a trade. And they’re hoping that by dramatically walking away, they will force the Kings or whoever the Suns, whoever else it is, the Bulls have been rumored to be in the mix, all these teams to then say, “Wait, wait, wait. Okay, okay, you win. We’ll give you whatever piece it is.” Maybe for Sacramento, there’s some speculation it could be uh, you know, Malik Monk and an unprotected pick instead of a a lottery protected pick, which is what’s rumored to be offered right now. Um, I do think that is part of this is really a a two-pronged assault here. This is we’re either going to get Kaminga on a super team friendly deal or we’re going to force one of these teams that we’re talking trade with by making a grand show of saying we will not trade him. We’re going to force them to give us what we want. There’s also the third avenue where you don’t get the trade and he takes the qualifying offer and that’s what they’re because they don’t believe he will do it. Yeah. They’re not sure he’ll do that. they don’t think he’ll do it and they’re taking his bet and and I understand that perspective too because if I’m Kaminga I don’t really want to take that deal either but he must really feel confident in what he can do. He did say he’d bet on himself and I think that was also to put pressure on them that hey if I got if I you want me to do it I’ll do it like if you really want me to do it I’ll do it and we’ll figure out something from there and we’ll just cut ties and that is and the thing is is that while they’re they’re they’re feeling like he’s not going to do it like you said in the very beginning that is the worst possible scenario for them. They don’t want him to do it. They don’t actually want him to do it. So be a big loss. It would be a huge they would be the biggest loser in the deal if if that decision comes down and Kaminga says screw it. I’m taking the qualifying offer so I can be an unrestricted free agent cuz I don’t trust you guys. That the Warriors are then staring down losing him for nothing. He has a no trade clause and he’s an unrestricted free agent next summer. That’s a disaster for Golden State if that happens. Now, as Kawakami notes, several sources have indicated the Warriors have been unenthusiastic about the general idea of a Kaminga signing trade. I don’t buy it. The broad context is that Joe Leup remains a fan of Kamingos and is determined to either keep him on the roster or get real value in return. We definitely want to keep him. Okay. Unless you give us the stuff that that that we want. That is not as strong of a statement as it as it comes across as. Yeah. I’ve heard on ESPN that there are parties within the Warriors that actually do want to keep Kuminga. It’s just they’re not all aligned on it. And so I think that’s where that second part of that is very valuable is like hey okay well if we can’t if you because Kaminga also doesn’t want to be there like that’s part of it too. So if he doesn’t want to be there then we got to at least try to get what we can for him. Yeah. And so uh if I’m Kaminga I get look Sacramento is telling him come here. You’re our day one starter. You’re our starting power forward. come here and the Warriors can’t offer him that. And so I can see where he would think, you know what, for my career, for me to take that next step, I need to go somewhere where I’m going to be used differently. I think it’s a it’s not the same situation. It’s not apples to apples, but we look at James Harden, who’s being used as a sixth man in OKC, was able to get to Houston. Now, that was via a trade. Um, but next thing you know, suddenly his opportunity changes and he goes from being, hey, this guy’s really, really good to, oh my god, this guy’s a superstar and he winds up winning an MVP. I’m not saying John, don’t hear what I’m not saying. I’m not saying Jonathan Kaminga is James Harden, but we do have a history of players who, if they can get into a situation where the opportunity is greater, they earn a lot more money for themselves because they can change their standing around the NBA. And that is what it is that Jonathan Kaminga would look to do here. So this is this is a the standoff of all standoffs. I I could see Jonathan Kaminga being offended by the Warriors just saying no, we won’t trade you and and saying fine then I’m doing what you really don’t want me to do and I’m picking up the qualifying offer. But I think it comes down to value. Yeah. If the offer is 22 million for next year and it’s a team option on the second year, 22 million for next year versus playing for $7.9 million. So that’s a $14 million gap there. Does Jonathan Kaminga think he’s going to get by being an unrestricted free agent next summer and getting to pick his team? Does he think that’s going to net him the difference that he’d be giving up by taking that qualifying offer? I think that’s an interesting way for him to look at this and say, “Am I $14 million more valuable over the life of my next contract if I can pick my team next summer or do I just take 22 million right now? There’s a team option on the second year. Maybe the team picks it up, maybe they don’t. There’s a team option on the second year. And then I have to trust that when, not if, when the Warriors trade me, cuz that’s probably going to happen, they send me some place that I actually want to go to. That’s the decision here for Kaminga now. And I don’t know which way this is this is going to go. Selfishly, I’m kind of hoping he picks up the qualifying offer because that’s where we just get absolute chaos. Warriors fans will hate me for saying that, but that’s where we get the most chaos in this situation. Oh, yeah. I think that would be really interesting if he actually decides to do that. And then we also, like we talked about earlier, he we’ve got that situation where, okay, you’re on the qualifying offer and now you’re even more desperate for playing opportunity. Yeah. Than you would have been if you were on a long or on a another contract opportunity. So that’s where it’s, you know, if I’m coming, I I would be wary of that. I understand it. You can bet on yourself all you want and that’s perfectly fine, but are you making that bet on your rotation spot? Like because I wouldn’t bet on the rotation spot. I wouldn’t bet on getting enough volume of minutes to be able to really show what you can do and have because then you said you want to, you know, say is he worth does he make up that $14 million and and what it’s worth in the next deal? Well, you’re probably also on your next deal starting from less than you want to anyway because of the upcoming season in which you were on the Warriors and you didn’t look like the star you think you are. So, you’re just playing catch-up at that point. So, that’s where like there’s just so much to this that I can understand why they think he won’t do it. Um, but hey, it’d be a really ballsy move if he does wind up doing it for sure. Oh, absolutely. Absolutely. Look, if he last two seasons he’s taken about 12 shots per game. Yeah. I don’t think that’s enough. Even if his efficiency improves, I don’t think that’s enough for him to be he wants to be seen as one of the next up. He believes he’s a star. And if you believe you’re a star, I get it. If they if you feel like they’re misusing you and they’ve mis handled your situation, I understand it. Um but in order to show that you’re a star, you need the ability to do so. And on this team, you’re not going to have that. and and so the the contracts unfortunately greatly value overall statistical production and he’s not going to have that here. So that’s where like the qualifying offer thing yeah it’s kind of tricky and it is I don’t know if if that’s the best decision because he’d like I said be playing catchup for potentially several years. Um but again pretty ballsy. Yeah, we’ll see where where this goes. Obviously a fascinating situation, but according to to Tim Kawakami, Warriors Horses saying they’re not trading him. They’re shutting that down in an attempt to force Kaminga’s hand or force the Kings, the Suns, somebody else to increase their offer for him. Does the the Warriors are calling the bluff of Jonathan Kaminga? Does he turn around and call theirs and take the qualifying offer? Again, more reporting out at out of Golden State that indeed the Warriors not going to trade Jonathan Kaminga. Give us your thoughts in the comments down below. And again, don’t forget to subscribe. So important that you hit that subscribe button. Till next time, everybody. See you and stay safe.

In this video Trevor Lane and Donnie Freeman discuss the latest on the Jonathan Kuminga front, with the Warriors reportedly shutting down trade talks to force Kuminga’s hand…

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