The Atlanta Hawks remain positioned to help Jonathan Kuminga secure a larger contract through a sign-and-trade.
They are not interested in sacrificing their remaining financial flexibility to make that happen for the Los Angeles Lakers.
NBA insider Jake Fischer wrote Friday in The Stein Line that Atlanta has not considered taking back Jarred Vanderbilt in a framework that would send Kuminga to Los Angeles.
“It’s believed that the Lakers hope to package their lone tradeable first-round pick swap left over in 2032 along with Jarred Vanderbilt in a sign-and-trade proposal for Kuminga,” Fischer wrote. “Sources say Atlanta, however, has not considered taking back Vanderbilt in a deal that sends out Kuminga.”
The Hawks’ position adds another complication to negotiations involving Kuminga, an unrestricted free agent who can choose his next team but needs Atlanta’s cooperation to receive more than the limited offer the cap-strapped Lakers can make outright.
Los Angeles lacks the room to sign Kuminga at his expected market value. A sign-and-trade would allow the Lakers to offer more while providing Atlanta with compensation for facilitating his departure.
That does not mean the Hawks are willing to accept any return.
Hawks Protecting Room Below First Apron
GettyLos Angeles Lakers forward Jarred Vanderbilt is the hold-up in the Jonathan Kuminga sign-and-trade.
Atlanta’s reluctance appears to be rooted in salary-cap strategy as much as Vanderbilt’s fit.
The Hawks are approximately $11.4 million below the NBA’s first apron, according to salary cap analyst Yossi Gozlan of Third Apron after re-signing Jock Landale at the start of free agency. That cushion gives the front office room to maneuver during the season while avoiding the roster-building restrictions that accompany crossing the threshold.
Vanderbilt is entering the third season of the four-year, $48 million extension he signed with the Lakers in September 2023. He is owed $12.4 million in 2026-27 and holds a $13.3 million player option for 2027-28.
Taking back that salary without a corresponding move would consume Atlanta’s remaining cushion and could push the Hawks above the first apron.
For a franchise building its next core around Jalen Johnson, preserving flexibility carries more value than absorbing a multi-year contract primarily to help another team solve its cap problem.
Vanderbilt remains a useful defender and rebounder when healthy, but recurring injuries and limited shooting have complicated his market. His contract is more important to the Lakers as a salary-matching tool than it appears to be to Atlanta as a roster piece.
Lakers May Need a Third Team
Fischer wrote that Los Angeles has explored multi-team constructions that would send Vanderbilt somewhere other than Atlanta.
“There are said to be multi-team scenarios that the Lakers could pursue that would offload Vanderbilt to a different team than Atlanta,” Fischer wrote. “That would help the Lakers provide Kuminga with an offer richer than the two-year, $20 million deal that sources say they originally presented him.”
Kuminga and his agent, Aaron Turner, president of Verus Management Team, have maintained dialogue with the Lakers about a potential role alongside Luka Dončić.
Fischer also reported that Kuminga is open to contract structures below the $22.5 million he earned last season, depending on which sign-and-trade opportunities materialize.
That flexibility may help narrow the financial gap. It does not remove Atlanta’s leverage.
The Hawks can cooperate with Kuminga’s preferred destination while still insisting that any transaction protect their cap sheet and advance their own roster plan.
For the Lakers, that means finding another home for Vanderbilt, which could become the first necessary step toward bringing Kuminga to Los Angeles.
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