New Blockbuster Three-Team Trade Proposal Sends Jonathan Kuminga to Pacers, Toppin to Warriors

Although it's always difficult to predict exactly how the offseason will affect the upcoming NBA season, it seems clear that the Eastern Conference is going to be up for grabs. The Indiana Pacers won the conference last year in one of the most surprising championship runs in recent memory, but they are going to be without Tyrese Haliburton for the year. The Boston Celtics have always been a force in the Eastern Conference, but Jayson Tatum went down with an Achilles injury in the second round and will miss the upcoming season. The Bucks made a big move to add Myles Turner, but they had to cut Damian Lillard to do it. In short, the only three teams that seem to be locks for postseason returns are the New York Knicks, Orlando Magic and the Cleveland Cavaliers. That leaves an opportunity for several teams to take advantage.

The Atlanta Hawks are certainly doing their best to seize that opportunity. After trading for Celtics big man Kristaps Porzingis and drafting Georgia power forward Asa Newell, Atlanta reached a pair of huge free agent signings. The Hawks signed a marquee free agent in Wolves guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker to a four-year, $62 million deal in a sign and trade that sent a 2027 2nd-round pick (via CLE) to the Wolves. Then, the Hawks signed free agent guard Luke Kennard to a one-year, $11 million deal. They also got an unprotected first-round pick from the New Orleans Pelicans in a draft-night trade. Given the massive injuries in the Eastern Conference next season, it seems that the Atlanta Hawks are going for it and making moves to put themselves in position to contend. One area they could still use some depth is at small forward or another ball-handler.

After being eliminated by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the second round, it's clear the Golden State Warriors need to consider changes. Acquiring Jimmy Butler at the trade deadline helped improve their roster, but their matchup against the Timberwolves showed that the Warriors still need more on defense and could use more shooting. They had no answer for Julius Randle in the Timberwolves series and went on several cold streaks without Steph Curry to push them forward. The clearest way towards improving their ceiling by resolving the Jonathan Kuminga situation.

Like many of the restricted free agents this summer, Kuminga and the Warriors are at an impasse in terms of signing a new deal. The young wing reportedly wants a long-term commitment and he's unsatisfied with the two-year, $45 million contract offer that Golden State has on the table. Kuminga is in search of a long-term contract offer and it is known that both the Phoenix Suns and Sacramento Kings are interested in giving it to him. However, the Suns' reported trade package, per NBA insider Marc J. Spears, is absent of any first-rounders. They are putting Royce O'Neale, Nick Richards and four second-round picks on the table. If the Warriors aren't interested in that package, it opens room up for another team to make an offer.

One team that might be interested are the Indiana Pacers. In the absence of Tyrese Haliburton, they have no incentive to compete next season for a title. Therefore, they can experiment with a starting lineup of Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Kuminga, Pascal Siakam and Jay Huff/Isaiah Jackson. Kuminga could be an interesting fit in Indiana considering the abundance of capable shooters around him and the Pacers have little to lose if they put their 2027 first-rounder on the table. Haliburton should be back by then and it's unlikely that their 2027 first-round pick will be very high.

So how about a trade where each of these teams tries to fill a need?

It should be noted that this is just a speculative and fun exercise to see what kind of moves can be made, not what I think the Hawks or any other teams should do or will do. That is all.

Hawks Receive: Trayce Jackson-Davis, 2030 2nd round pick (via GSW), 2031 2nd round pick (via MIN/GSW)

Pacers Receive: Jonathan Kuminga (sign-and-trade, 3 YR, $68M, $28M salary in Y1 with player option in Y3)

Warriors Receive: Obi Toppin, Mo Gueye, 2027 1st-round pick (unprotected, via GSW)

Why the Hawks would do this deal: They need a third-string center and Trayce Jackson-Davis's flashes suggest he can be exactly that. Jackson-Davis fell out of the Warriors' rotation last season, but he's been a good player when his number is called. As a rookie, he averaged 1.1 blocks and had impressive defensive performances like blocking Giannis three times in one game. However, Quinten Post took his role this season and Jackson-Davis was relegated to a bench role. In the Warriors' Game 2 loss to the Wolves, Jackson-Davis got more minutes and scored 15 points while grabbing six rebounds. He's a complete non-shooter, but he can be a lob threat and capable defender if given an opportunity.

Why the Hawks would not do this deal: As mentioned above, TJD had a hard time fitting in on a postseason contender and didn't have much utility on offense, which limited his defensive impact. He's also slightly undersized for a center at 6'9.

Why the Pacers would do this deal: Jonathan Kuminga's flashes of potential are incredibly tantalizing. With Curry out in the Minnesota series, he dropped 30 points in Game 3 against a very strong Timberwolves defense. He's an incredibly athletic wing who converted on 72% of his attempts at the rim last season, good for the 87th percentile relative to all wings. One of his most useful skills is drawing tons of contact - he finished last season in the 94th percentile among wings for percentage of shots fouled on (16,5%). Although he's not a great defender, he has tons of defensive potential that shows up in spurts. Even though he isn't a center, he'd provide a lot of rim pressure for a team that is losing some of that with the departure of Myles Turner. He can also play off great shooting threats in Nesmith, Nembhard and Siakam, which will give him more space to work with.

Why the Pacers would not do this deal: Kuminga isn't a standout defender and he's on an expensive contract. The Pacers would also only get one year to evaluate the fit of Kuminga and Haliburton before he can opt out of his deal and be eligible to sign a new contract, so they don't open up much flexibility. Toppin was also a great lineup piece for them throughout their playoff run and they may prioritize having him on the roster.

Why the Warriors would do this deal: Considering the lack of size that the Warriors have, acquiring Toppin would net them a player who can operate as a small-ball five and has playoff experience next to a lead creator similar to Curry. Toppin shot 36.5% from deep on decent volume in the regular season, so he'd be able to fit into the Warriors' spacing and improve their frontcourt depth if they don't end up with Al Horford. Gueye is an interesting development project - he showed exciting defensive chops last season in Atlanta. He posted a BLK% of 3.3% (87th percentile) and a STL% of 2.3% (96th percentile). Gueye needs to cut down on fouls, but there's a chance he could develop into a nice backup big man who can slide in at either the 4 or 5 as a standout defender.

Why the Warriors would not do this deal: It severely handicaps their spending power on the rest of their roster, which is a problem considering that they only have nine players officially on their roster. Golden State is rumored to already have deals lined up with Al Horford and De'Anthony Melton - it's possible those would fall through if they were to do this trade.

More Atlanta Hawks News:

New Blockbuster Three-Team Trade Proposal Sends Jonathan Kuminga to Brooklyn, Golden State Lands Nic Claxton

Hawks Acquisition of Kristaps Porzingis Tabbed As the 4th Best "Under The Radar " Move Of The NBA Offseason

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