Jazz Must Monitor Trade Rumors Surrounding Former Top 10 Pick

A crucial offseason lies ahead for the Golden State Warriors after their second-round exit against the Los Angeles Lakers. There’s been no shortage of rumors surrounding the team’s star players, coaching staff, and even front-office members. Despite all of that noise, there’s one recent ‘under-the-radar' rumor recently surfacing on NBA Twitter that could catch the eye of the Utah Jazz.

There remains a strong level of interest in Jonathan Kuminga around the league, per @ZachLowe_NBA pic.twitter.com/ZyC1HEe5K4
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) May 17, 2023

According to respected NBA insider, ESPN’s Zach Lowe, Warriors’ Jonathan Kuminga has remained a player of interest around team front offices. This is just two seasons removed from Kuminga being drafted to Golden State at 7th overall in the 2021 draft. Clearly, a player that possessed intriguing enough traits for the Warriors to take a shot on him. Fast forward to now, we could see the 20-year-old potentially on his way out of the Bay Area in these drastic times.

If that is the case, the Jazz must be doing their due diligence on Kuminga. He’s coming fresh off of a season averaging 9.9 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.9 assists, shooting 52/37/65 splits. Carrying a long, 6’8 frame with excellent athleticism, we’re looking at a player that still has some tremendous upside that remains underutilized.

The Warriors have put Kuminga in a situation where he’s limited in his overall contribution because he’s playing behind some of the all-time greats. Throughout his two year career, he’s failed to start over 30 regular season games. For a top ten pick, these are some extreme limitations in order to show maximized production.

Golden State also happens to still in a win-now window, so taking the time to develop young talent isn’t as prioritized. I mean, why would you want to give an unpolished player like Kuminga tons of minutes when you have the likes of Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, and Draymond Green?

For a team like the Jazz, however, this would be the perfect setting to put Kuminga in. Utah has no immediate expectations to push for a championship, so allowing a player like Jonathan to take some time to fully develop as a player is feasible.

The potential framework of a deal is hard to forecast at the moment. The Warriors season ended less than a week ago, and there’s still a lot to iron out over on that side. However, with the Jazz’s nine players currently on contract for next season, along with three first-round picks in the 2023 draft, we could see Utah with a variety of options when it comes to a Kuminga trade.

Entering what should be an aggressive and important offseason for the Utah Jazz, look to see their name thrown in many more rumors in the coming months.

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