Overview
- Veteran reporter Marc Stein has described a Kuminga trade as inevitable, with league expectations pointing to a move before the Feb. 5 deadline.
- Bill Simmons predicted on his podcast that Kuminga would be off the roster immediately after the restriction lifts, framing it as his guess rather than reporting.
- Kuminga signed a two-year deal with a team option that blocks trades until Jan. 15, a structure executives say boosts his value as one of the league’s better trade chips.
- He has missed five straight games with knee tendinitis as Golden State has hovered around .500 after a 4–1 start, adding urgency to roster questions.
- Role tensions have resurfaced with a recent bench demotion and reports he feels like a scapegoat, even as Jimmy Butler publicly rejected the idea the team plays better without him; outside speculation has even linked Boston’s Sam Hauser as a potential target.