When it comes to current unrestricted free agents in the NBA, the top name that is still available would be Jonathan Kuminga. Reportedly, the 23-year-old had been looking for a contract that teams simply can’t afford to pay at this point in the offseason unless a sign-and-trade were to be executed.
Therefore, Kuminga may have to take a one-year prove-it deal and try again next offseason. The two most-talked-about suitors for the 2022 NBA champion are the Los Angeles Lakers and the Minnesota Timberwolves.
If Kuminga joins the latter, it would be a full-circle moment for the Timberwolves, as the draft pick used to select him was involved in a Minnesota trade back in 2020.
Trade with Warriors didn’t pan out for Timberwolves
On February 6, 2020, the Timberwolves made a deal with the Golden State Warriors.
Minnesota traded its former first overall pick in 2014, Andrew Wiggins, along with a top-three-protected 2021 first-round pick and a 2021 second-round pick. In exchange, the Wolves received D’Angelo Russell, Jacob Evans, and Omari Spellman.
The 2021 first-rounder given up to Golden State turned out to be the seventh overall selection. The Warriors took Kuminga with that pick.
Kuminga had his highs and lows while with the Warriors. As a rookie, he became the youngest player to ever start a playoff game and eventually won a championship that year. He was also in Steve Kerr’s doghouse on a few occasions before being traded to the Atlanta Hawks in February 2026.
So, more than six years later, the Timberwolves could have the chance to partially rectify a trade that didn’t exactly work out for them. Evans played in just two games for them, and Spellman played in none. Russell had a poor six games in the one playoff series that he played with the Wolves in 2022, making just one-third of his shot attempts, before they traded him in 2023 in a deal that netted Minnesota both Mike Conley and Nickeil Alexander-Walker.
The Wolves would be able to provide Kuminga with a starting role at power forward from the get-go. Currently, they could also offer him only the veteran’s minimum, which is substantially less than he was hoping for, but he can reestablish his value and enter free agency again in 2027.
Technically, the Timberwolves traded Kuminga back in 2020, before he was even in the NBA. Now, they can perhaps get him to fill a hole in the starting lineup that has been discussed all offseason.
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