Image Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

NBA Expert Urges Golden State Warriors to Pursue Mavericks’ P.J. Washington as Potential Jonathan Kuminga Replacement

The Dubs and restricted free agent Kuminga are yet to reach a deal.

Image Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

NBA expert G.C. Bellachamber of FanSided has urged the Golden State Warriors to pursue Dallas Mavericks’ forward P.J. Washington as a potential replacement for Jonathan Kuminga. Notably, the Dubs haven’t been able to reach a deal with restricted free agent Kuminga as he has turned down their offer, the seven-time champions are reportedly not willing to change the offer. This has cost the Warriors multiple free agent deals that they could have finalized if the Kuminga situation got resolved.

It is almost certain that Kuminga’s time with the Dubs is nearing its end either this offseason or the February trade deadline. Not only this, but even the role of the 22-year-old forward isn’t clear in Steve Kerr’s rotation. Considering this, Bellachamber urged the Warriors to pursue Washington as a replacement for Kuminga. He wrote, “While it is highly unlikely that the Mavericks would have any interest in Kuminga, given their aforementioned logjam in the frontcourt, the Warriors are also almost certainly planning on moving on from Kuminga sometime within the next year.”

He added, “Therefore, if they are eventually able to offload Kuminga’s salary to an interested team, they could then set their sights on Washington as the ideal addition in their frontcourt.” Washington is a flexible player and would be able to fit well along with Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green. However, if that is the case, then the Dubs need to take action soon. It is because Washington is expected to sign an extension with the Mavs before the beginning of the regular season.

If that happens, he won’t be eligible to be traded until the next off season.

NBA Insider Predicts Major Change Warriors Will Make in Offer to Keep Jonathan Kuminga

NBA insider Dan Favale of Bleacher Report has predicted that the Golden State Warriors will make a major change in their current offer to keep Jonathan Kuminga. Earlier, multiple insiders reported that the Dubs have made a two-year, $45 million offer to Kuminga. However, the 2022 champion is not accepting it because of the team option for the second season.

Recently, Favale predicted that Kuminga will return to the Warriors if they make a major change in their current offer. He opined that they will remove the team option for a player option in the 2026-27 season. Favale shared, “Prediction: Jonathan Kuminga re-signs with the Warriors on a two-year, $45 million deal, with a player option for 2026-27.” This is a fair amount which the Dubs could offer to Kuminga, who finished the 2024-25 season at an average of 15.3 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game.

He did drop some notable performances towards the end of the season. However, Kuminga’s inconsistency, and lack of versatility make it difficult to justify a greater sum right now.

Jonathan Kuminga

P.J. Washington

Garima Ranawat

Garima is a sports writer with around two years of experience in Indian sports and a newfound interest in the NBA. Inspired by the leadership of cricketing legend MS Dhoni, she wishes to bring in newer perspectives to the NBA fanatics with her writing.