It is already August and Jonathan Kuminga does not have a new NBA team yet. That is all of his own doing. The sooner the free agent forward can accept the Los Angeles Lakers have — by far — the best opportunity for him, the quicker things can get moving on a sign-and-trade.
Kuminga has pushed for more money, and otherwise, but the reality is the Lakers should feel no obligation to significantly raise his salary. In fact, maintaining next year's nontaxpayer midlevel exception gives them ample reason to not overpay for the former lottery pick.
The Lakers are already the team to beat by all accounts in the Kuminga sweepstakes. They have the best opportunity when it comes to playing time and role. They offer solid financial security with a three-year deal being the minimum timeframe needed in a sign-and-trade. Los Angeles is also the type of platform that can set him up for an even bigger payday in the future.
What are the alternatives? The Cleveland Cavaliers, where it may not even be a foregone conclusion that Kuminga starts? Returning to the Atlanta Hawks on a one-year deal and running it back in free agency next season against a better crop of available players? Kuminga has to understand he needs the Lakers just as much, if not more, than the franchise actually needs him.
Jonathan Kuminga's options outside of Los Angeles are far from great
Joining the Cavaliers comes with no guarantee of starting for Kuminga. Dropping him in among Evan Mobley and Jarrett Allen creates spacing issues that could be easily resolved by bringing the 23-year-old off the bench. That makes Cleveland a spot where his role is far from undeniably attractive.
So, what if the Hawks option is the one Kuminga wanted to explore?
Well, there are certainly no guarantees of starting and proving himself ahead of next year's free agency either. Between 22 combined regular season and playoff games with the Hawks last season, Kuminga only started once. That makes it much harder to feature himself for a payday in 2027.
Plus, the potential free agents for next year could be stacked. That list could include the likes of Giannis Antetokounmpo, Stephen Curry, Nikola Jokic, Kawhi Leonard, Anthony Davis, Jimmy Butler, Karl-Anthony Towns, and others. Naturally, a handful of those players should be expected to get extensions done, but the point still stands. There will be healthy competition.
Kuminga could get a fair payday from Los Angeles this offseason, and avoid the concerns of a limited role. A starting forward spot with the Lakers would give him an opportunity to compete for the third option role behind Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves.
Lakers can make do without adding Jonathan Kuminga
Meanwhile, the Lakers may prefer Kuminga here, but he is not their only option to start at forward.
Los Angeles can explore a variety of different solutions. Whether it is taking a shot on Sandro Mamukelashvili as a starter, trading for another available forward, or gambling on the upside of someone like Ziaire Williams or Adou Thiero, the Lakers can figure it out.
Are some of those alternatives as exciting as Kuminga? From a talent perspective, probably not.
However, they are workable. The Lakers are far from desperate here, and Kuminga must understand that. Otherwise, this could turn into a prime example of fumbling the bag that is talked about years down the line.
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