With Peyton Watson signing with the Cleveland Cavaliers, the Los Angeles Lakers are now the clear-cut favorites to pull off a sign-and-trade deal with the Atlanta Hawks for Jonathan Kuminga.
In part because the Minnesota Timberwolves — the other reported suitor for Kuminga — can offer the Congolese forward only a $6 million taxpayer mid-level exception, and are not said to be motivated enough to trade for him. The Lakers, meanwhile, have the pieces to get a deal done with the Hawks.
A new Lakers trade idea doing the rounds would enable Kuminga to sign with the franchise on a starting salary of $15M — a figure none of his suitors, including the Cavaliers, were willing to offer. As per CBA rules, the contract would have to be for at least three years, though the second and third years need not be fully guranateed.
New Lakers Trade Pitch for Kuminga
Lakers would receive: Jonathan Kuminga ($15M salary via sign-and-trade)
Hawks would receive: Noah Clowney
Nets would receive: Dalton Knecht, Jaden Hardy
The Brooklyn Nets will help the Hawks and Lakers execute the trade by taking on the expiring salaries of Dalton Knecht and Jaden Hardy, while giving up on Noah Clowney, who is due to become a restricted free agent next year.
The trade idea may be specifically appealing to the Hawks, who have been hesitant to take on Jarred Vanderbilt’s contract, per multiple insiders. Clowney, a young big with high upside, could be a nice fit on a vibrant and athletic Hawks squad.
Lakers Have All the Leverage
According to Heavy Sports’ Sean Deveney, there “just is not money out there for Kuminga,” given that the LA Clippers and Charlotte Hornets used up cap space as facilitators in the Watson to Cavaliers deal, and the Milwaukee Bucks may not have the players that the Hawks may in a potential sign-and-trade transaction.
As such, the Lakers may have all the leverage, especially if they can rope in a third team.
Shortly before the Watson trade, an NBA executive told Deveney that Kuminga may have no choice but to take a bargain deal from the Lakers.
âI think he would like to play for the Lakers and theyâd like to have him, but I know theyâand a lot of teamsâhave already told him, âLook, this is what we can do,â so he has all the information,” the exec told Heavy.
“The money, the cap space, it has been spent. Heâs not waiting for anything new out there, because there is nothing new thatâs gonna happen. So, he is stuck. But he is entitled to take as much time as he wants.â
Per Deveney, the Lakers previously offered a two-year, $20M deal for Kuminga, but that was long before they filled up their roster with nine new pieces. At the time Kuminga’s camp sought a deal in the $20-$20M per season range.
“Now, though, if Kuminga gets a new contract through a sign-and-trade, itâs going to fall well short of $20 million per year,” wrote the NBA insider.
“It would be more like $15 million per year, and he would be locked into it for three years. And thatâs only if he can somehow find the teams willing to engage in a sign-and-trade which, as weâve said, is getting less and less likely.”
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