The signing that once seemed inevitable has officially fallen through. After months of speculation that Jonathan Kuminga would join the Los Angeles Lakers, he instead signed a fairly low-cost deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves.
In the process, Kuminga has left the Lakers scrambling to figure out an ideal resolution for their need for a starting-caliber forward to round out their starting lineup.
Kuminga, 23, had long been rumored to be the player the Lakers were eyeing to start for them at forward. An athletic slasher with defensive potential and value as a lob target, the former NBA champion looked the part of a sure thing for a Los Angeles side in need of talent at the 3 and 4.
Unfortunately, Shams Charania of ESPN is reporting that the Timberwolves have signed Kuminga to a team-friendly deal of two years and $13 million.
BREAKING: Jonathan Kuminga has agreed to a two-year, $13 million deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves, plus a player option, agent Aaron Turner tells ESPN. Kuminga will be a starter alongside Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball, Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert on the West contender. pic.twitter.com/KdtD6YEy9j
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) August 26, 2026
However one may feel about Kuminga opting against signing with the Lakers, the fact remains that a glaring void now exists in the starting lineup.
Jonathan Kuminga chooses Wolves over Lakers, leaves void in starting 5
Los Angeles' options at the forward positions aren't exactly ideal. They could start Quentin Grimes in something of a three-guard lineup to address the void at the 3-spot, with the 6'8" Luka Doncic conceivably matching up against taller wings.
In that scenario, the Lakers could plausibly play Sandro Mamukelashvili at the 4 as a sharpshooting scorer alongside center Walker Kessler.
The issue with that approach is that Mamukelashvili played just eight percent of his minutes at power forward in 2025-26, per Basketball Reference. He has the offensive skill set to do so, but his limited lateral mobility and struggles out in space suggest he isn't exactly ideal for the position on the defensive end of the floor—particularly if Los Angeles is facing a team with a small-ball lineup.
That poses the question: Who exactly is ideal for the starting 4 spot among the Lakers' current collection of forwards?
Who among Lakers' forwards can realistically start instead of Kuminga?
Los Angeles currently has four forwards on the roster who stand at 6'7" or taller—a fair prerequisite for potentially matching up against power forwards. Those players are Jake LaRavia, Matisse Thybulle, Jarred Vanderbilt, and Ziaire Williams.
Thybulle is the only one of those four players who shot at least 35.0 percent from beyond the arc in 2025-26, which is another reasonable prerequisite considering Kessler is a non-shooter. Unfortunately, he's also played 45 games over the past two seasons.
LaRavia and Vanderbilt have experience under head coach JJ Redick, but their inefficiency as shooters would compromise spacing. That leaves Williams, who shot 34.3 percent from distance in 2025-26 and started just 58 games over the past two seasons for Brooklyn Nets teams that won a combined 46 games during that time.
Compounded by the fact that Los Angeles has limited options in its pursuit of a potential upgrade, there simply isn't a clear path to a resolution.
Add us as a preferred source on Google