The biggest question mark of the Warriors’ NBA offseason revolves around impending restricted free agent forward Jonathan Kuminga.
After the first phase of the offseason concluded with Thursday’s second round of the 2025 NBA Draft, general manager Mike Dunleavy offered insight into where the Warriors stand with the former No. 7 overall pick.
On Friday’s episode of “The TK Show,” Tim Kawakami asked Dunleavy about Kuminga’s comments earlier this week, when the 22-year-old expressed his desire to be “great” and an NBA All-Star.
“As a young player, I love the personal ambition,” Dunleavy stated. “That’s what I see, first and foremost, with the comments. He’s a guy that believes in himself, wants to see what he can do.
“I think, ultimately, if we’re able to bring him back, we see a path for him to be able to do some of those things here.”
While Kuminga will be free to negotiate with other teams once NBA free agency begins June 30, Golden State will have the chance to match any contract offer sheet he receives from another franchise.
Kuminga’s potential isn’t much of a debate, but it’s fair to wonder if he can become a consistent, high-end scorer on a team led by veteran stars Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler.
Varying from DNP-CDs to the Warriors’ main scoring threat, Kuminga’s playing time under coach Steve Kerr fluctuated greatly throughout the end of the 2024-25 NBA season. As Dunleavy recognized, Golden State will need to make a firm decision on the young forward’s role going forward — which could affect how both sides approach contract talks.
“I think that will come out in the wash. It will get figured out, honestly,” Dunleavy said of Kuminga’s unclear role with the Warriors. “And that would be the calculus on us bringing him back and him wanting to be back here. So these are all of the things we have to go through and figure out. These are all questions that just can’t really be answered until we know what the deal is.”
Whatever those answers end up being, it will be very interesting to see how Golden State continues to handle this saga with a rising star.
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