Although Jonathan Kuminga had a great 2023-2024 season, the Golden State Warriors had a pretty hard time last season. From an individual standpoint, JK had a breakout season, but it was not enough to help the GSW to make the playoffs. Both franchise icons – Klay Thompson and Draymond Green, had a terrible time last year in terms of their performance. They failed to help the face of the Dubs to lead the team to win their fifth title in ten years. Stephen Curry felt like a lone Warrior for the most part of the season. Eventually, after the 2023-2024 regular season, the Dubs finished as the tenth seed in the Western Conference. Later, they lost to the Sacramento Kings in the play-in tournament.
After the disappointing end of the last season, Klay Thompson decided to leave the Dubs in his free agency. He went on to join the Dallas Mavericks on a three-year deal worth $50 million. But the Dubs did not manage to find a suitable replacement for the sharpshooter. Hence, they will have to rely on the young talents on their roster, like Jonathan Kuminga and Brandin Podziemski, to take up the responsibility. Lately, reports suggest that the Dubs are willing to offer a 5-year extension to JK.
Are Warriors Willing To Offer Jonathan Kuminga A 5-Year Deal Worth $140-155 Million?
This offseason, Jonathan Kuminga can sign a rookie extension with the Warriors for a maximum deal. But it doesn’t seem like the GSW would offer him a max deal. Brett Siegel, an NBA Insider, reported that the Dubs will offer JK a five-year extension around a $140-155 million contract. However, the young Warrior is eligible to sign a maximum deal of around $225 million. Other 2021 draft picks like Franz Wagner and Scottie Barnes have signed maximum extensions worth $225 million. But the seven-time champions seem not keen to offer Kuminga one such deal. In the 2023-2024 season, JK had the best numbers of his career so far.
He averaged 16.1 ppg, 4.8 rpg, 2.2 assists, and also 0.5 blocks and 0.7 steals per game. A lot of credit goes to the Dub’s head coach, Steve Kerr, for the jump in production of the 21-year-old forward. He gave Kuminga a bigger role, and the player reciprocated by proving that he can deliver if he gets more chances. Anyway, the Warriors seem not convinced to offer a max deal to JK after just one great season from him. Several teams may also have looked at it the same way. But this way, the Golden State Warriors play with the risk of “Alienating” the young Congolese forward.
It Hasn’t Been A Smooth Ride For JK At The Bay Area
Since the Warriors drafted the young forward, he had been dealing with a lack of game time. Clearly, Kuminga is not too happy about it. It has not been all roses and sunshine for the Congolese forward since he was a seventh pick in the 2021 NBA draft. For the first two seasons, Kuminga hardly got a chance to play. But the problem with game time reached a boiling point in early January this year.
Reportedly, the 21-year-old forward lost faith in the head coach Steve Kerr after he benched JK for the last 18 minutes during a game against the Denver Nuggets. Kuminga was playing with 16 points, 4 assists, and 4 rebounds in that game, but he played for less than 19 minutes. Hence, the coach benching him did not sit well with the 21-year-old.
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