Golden State Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga is ready to take the $7.9 million qualifying offer unless the team improves its current offers, his agent Aaron Turner revealed recently.
“There’s a lot of upside,” Turner told “The Hoop Collective” podcast. “He wants to pick where he wants to go. So the QO is real for sure.”
The Warriors have put three different deals on the table for the 22-year-old rising star.
Their best offer? A three-year, $75.2 million contract with a team option for the third season. This would guarantee Kuminga $48.3 million over the first two years.
They also offered a two-year, $45 million deal with a team option on the second season and a three-year, $54 million deal without options.
Kuminga turned them all down.
The sticking point is simple: Kuminga wants a player option instead of a team option, giving him more control over his future. So far, the Warriors haven’t budged on this request.
“If they want to win now, if you want a guy that’s happy and treated fairly who is a big part of this team moving forward, you give him the player option,” Turner explained.
“You do lose a little of that trade value. But if it’s about the here and now, you give him that. You don’t get a perfect deal, but you get a pretty good deal and he gets to feel respected about what he gets and we all move on and worry about winning, helping Steph.”
The Qualifying Offer Gamble
Taking the qualifying offer would be a huge financial risk for Kuminga. He’d be giving up more than $40 million in guaranteed money over the next two seasons.
But it comes with some serious perks.
He’d get a no-trade clause, meaning the Warriors couldn’t ship him anywhere without his approval. Plus, he’d become an unrestricted free agent next summer, free to sign with any team.
“If JK wants to take it, it does have upside, right?” Turner said. “We’ve talked about that. You’re not getting traded. You’re gonna have unrestricted free agency.”
Some might worry about limited options in free agency, but Turner isn’t concerned.
“People are gonna say, ‘Well, Aaron, there’s not gonna be 10 or 12 teams with cap space.’ Fine, there’ll be six teams with cap space for the clear-cut under-35 top wing on the market. So there’s a lot of upside.”
Other teams are already circling. The Sacramento Kings have offered three years between $63 and $66 million, while the Phoenix Suns put a four-year deal worth $80 to $88 million on the table.
Despite these sign-and-trade possibilities, Golden State is playing hardball. They want at least an unprotected 2030 first-round pick and a young player without taking on any bad contracts.
Kuminga has been meeting with interested teams and apparently likes what he’s hearing.
“He’s gotten a chance to hear from other teams,” Turner revealed. “Sacramento, he’s spent some time with them, got to meet general manager Scott Perry, head coach Doug Christie, the Suns and what they’ve offered him. There’s been other teams, too, maybe planting seeds for 2026 or 2027.”
The pitch from these teams is appealing: “We want you to be you. We don’t want you to change anything. We want to put the ball in your hands. And we want to give you a huge opportunity to play.”
While Kuminga has until October 1 to sign the qualifying offer, that deadline can be extended if both sides agree.
