The word on the street is that Los Angeles Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka keeps calling about Jonathan Kuminga. The Lakers have added Quentin Grimes, Matisse Thybulle and Ziaire Williams on the wing this offseason, but they still could use more explosiveness and size at the position.
Kuminga would help with that, and he'd probably slot in as a starter for the Lake Show. Surely, Pelinka has pitched this to Kuminga and/or Kuminga's camp in recent days. The problem is that the Lakers apparently haven't offered a rich enough deal for Kuminga to bite at. This leaves open the possibility that another team will swoop in and pay Kuminga what he's looking for.
And it looks like a brand new suitor for Kuminga has entered the conversation following LeBron James' decision to join the Philadelphia 76ers.
Cavaliers have emerged as a Jonathan Kuminga suitor to spoil Lakers' pursuit
ESPN's Shams Charania has revealed that the Cleveland Cavaliers are expected to heavily pursue Kuminga now that Cleveland has lost out on James, whom they were hoping to slide in at the 3 or 4 spot in their starting lineup.
Even at 41 going on 42 years of age, LeBron still provides athleticism, particularly in a playoff series when he has adequate rest between games. That's what the 76ers are getting (among other attributes from Bron), and it's what the Cavs were "banking on" (Charania's words) but will be without.
Kuminga is a far cry from LeBron as a basketball player, but he certainly provides athleticism and size on the wing. The Cavs will need to match up with guys like the Boston Celtics' Jayson Tatum (not to mention LeBron and Jaylen Brown in Philly), but they don't have great size on the wing. Kuminga would be a crucial addition for them for this reason, and you can expect the Cavs' front office to go hard after Kuminga.
The Cavaliers have depth chart reasons to be desperate for Jonathan Kuminga
This doesn't bode well for a Lakers brass that's given Kuminga underwhelming offers so far (at least in Kuminga's view). Is Los Angeles going to be forced to up their price, or will Pelinka ultimately bow out of the sweepstakes entirely?
It'll be an interesting development to monitor in August; that is, if this entire Kuminga situation doesn't resolve itself before then. Even if the Lakers do end up snagging Kuminga, he's not necessarily a slam dunk acquisition.
Add us as a preferred source on Google