SAN FRANCISCO — Jonathan Kuminga, who is better known these days as the Warriors’ most likely and willing trade chip, has been linked with at least a half-dozen teams over the past few months.
The long line of possible deals involving Kuminga now includes him as a key element of a package to entice the Bucks to trade megastar Giannis Antetokounmpo. The trade deadline looms Thursday for the fifth-year player who is seeking a featured role outside the Bay Area.
The 23-year-old has sat out the past four games with knee soreness, but coach Steve Kerr sounded mildly optimistic about a possible Kuminga return during his post-practice media availability on Saturday.
“He said he was feeling better,” Kerr said, recalling a conversation after Friday’s loss to the Detroit Pistons. “He got a workout in today before our practice, so he’s getting he’s improving. He’s getting closer to being able to play. I don’t know what his status will be for Tuesday (against the 76ers).”
Kuminga sat for 16 consecutive games before making his return to the rotation last month, scoring 30 points in 30 minutes across two games. He then tweaked his knee against Dallas on Jan. 22 and has been out since.
Whether he has been a healthy scratch, playing or injured, Kuminga’s name has come up in hypothetical trades involving franchises from coast to coast. No team has been as linked to him as the Kings.
But Sacramento’s first trade before Thursday’s deadline did not involve the Warriors forward.
Coveted defensive guard Keon Ellis, long considered a valuable returning piece in any possible swap for Kuminga, went to Cleveland on Saturday alongside former Warrior Dennis Schroder in a deal centered around Cavaliers wing De’Andre Hunter.
The Bulls, another team linked to Kuminga, brought back onetime Golden State forward Dario Saric from Sacramento and a couple of second-rounders to make the salaries work.
Does this take the Kings out of the running for Kuminga?
Not at all.
National reporter Marc Stein relayed Saturday night that the Warriors have interest in Hunter, who is 28 years old and is a career 14.7-point-per-game scorer.
Kuminga and Hunter both make around $23 million this season, meaning that the two could hypothetically be traded almost straight-up for one another.
Hunter would instantly give Golden State a two-way bucket-getter in the frontcourt that the team has not had since Jimmy Butler tore his ACL in mid-January.
Hunter is not in Butler’s tier as a playmaker, and obviously is nowhere near the franchise-changing force that Antetokounmpo can boast to be. But he would present an instant upgrade at a key position.
On Sunday, the Hawks also sent guard Vit Krejci to Portland for center Duop Reath and a couple of second-round picks. It’s not exactly earth-shattering wheeling and dealing, but the Warriors could consider making a similar move on the margins, whether.
Teams are beginning to make moves, but Golden State still has until noon Thursday to figure out a trade — or choose to keep Kuminga against his wishes.
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