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Joel Embiid on the basketball court.
Unless the Golden State Warriors make a surprise decision with Jonathan Kuminga, it seems likely that the team will move on from him during the offseason. That doesn’t mean Kuminga will just sign as a free agent with another team, as the Warriors could use him in a sign-and-trade.
In a recent trade proposal to help the Warriors maximize their championship window from Fade Away World, they’d accomplish that. The deal would move on from Kuminga, Trayce Jackson-Davis, Brandin Podziemski, a 2028 first-round pick, and a 2031 first-round pick for Joel Embiid of the Philadelphia 76ers.
“The Golden State Warriors, aiming to maximize Stephen Curry, Draymond Green, and Jimmy Butler’s championship windows, pursue a bold move by acquiring Joel Embiid. Embiid, despite a dip in production due to injuries, averaged 23.8 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 4.5 assists over 19 games in the 2024–25 season.
“His presence would provide the Warriors with a dominant interior force, complementing Curry’s perimeter prowess. However, Golden State parts with promising talents like Jonathan Kuminga, who contributed 15.3 points and 4.6 rebounds per game, and Trayce Jackson-Davis, signaling a shift from developing youth to immediate contention,” Eddie Bitar wrote .
Does Joel Embiid Make Sense for Warriors?
Despite some of the injury concerns throughout Embiid’s career, if the Golden State Warriors could land him for this type of package, it’s something that has to be done.
He averaged 34.7 points during the 2023-24 season. When he was last somewhat healthy, which was in the 2022-23 season, he averaged 34.6 points and shot 54.8% from the field. He also added in 10.2 rebounds per game for good measure.
However, the Philadelphia 76ers have an opportunity to win a championship if Embiid is healthy, meaning that moving on from the 31-year-old, while the injuries are tough to ignore, doesn’t make too much sense.
Is It Time for Warriors to Sell High on Jonathan Kuminga?
Regarding Kuminga’s future with the Golden State Warriors, it doesn’t look too bright.
Speaking on a recent podcast, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said he must win now and can’t play someone who doesn’t help the team win.
That points directly at Kuminga and shows what comes this offseason.
“I’ve been asked to win, and right now, he’s not a guy who I can say I’m gonna play 38 minutes with the roster that we have — Steph [Curry], and Jimmy [Butler], and Draymond [Green] — and put the puzzle together that way and expect to win,” Kerr said , per SF Gate. “Doesn’t mean he’s not a really good player. Doesn’t mean he’s not talented. It just means with the fit and with the roster we have, it is tricky, there’s no question.
“We can talk details, we can talk spacing, usage rate, all that stuff, but the game is about the puzzle fitting. It’s about five guys complementing one another at both ends of the floor. All I do is I try to win, and that doesn’t necessarily mean everybody’s gonna be happy, whether it’s the fans, or the players, or management, whatever. I just gotta do what I think is best.”
Jon Conahan covers the NBA and NFL for Heavy.com. Since 2019, his sports coverage has appeared at Sports Illustrated, oddschecker, ClutchPoints and Sportskeeda. More about Jon Conahan
