This wasn’t how it was supposed to go.

Even if he was a bit of a high upside, rather than win-now pick, Jonathan Kuminga was one of the darlings of the 2021 Draft Class. While multiple sources, including Synergy Sports’ official NBA Draft Profile, pointed out his raw shooting mechanics as an area of improvement, Kuminga’s elite athleticism, frame, and near-limitless potential made him too enticing to skip with the seventh pick, so much so that he was only one of eighteen A+’s given out on draft night by CBS Sports’ Gary Parrish and Kyle Boone. For reference, Scottie Barnes in that same list was only given an A- with the fourth pick.

And while raw he was, Kuminga’s rookie season was nothing to scoff at. While the Rookie of the Year award was far from reach, he played legitimate minutes for the eventual NBA Champions. His Basketball Reference profile indicated very efficient minutes off the bench, highlighted by 198 points per 36 minutes (good for fourth on the team), as well as a slightly-above league average PER and a 60% true shooting percentage. The advanced stats loved him, and Kuminga did nothing but improve bit by inexorable bit, eventually peaking as the Warriors’ third-best scorer in 2024.

And then he fell off the face of the Earth. Forget his injury near the end of the season — Kuminga took a big step back in 2025, to the point of playing his. way off Golden State’s rotation. And despite his climb in previous years, clearly it hasn’t been fast enough for the Warriors, whose shopping of him has well-eclipsed the rumors of past years now that he’s a restricted free agent.

Letting Jonathan Kuminga walk would be a terrible move for the Warriors

Despite the rumors around Kuminga’s eventual departure, Golden State has been more than happy to sit on him. Even in an off year, Kuminga has attracted no shortage of trade suitors, one of whom the Warriors have already turned down, reported NBC Sports’ Ali Thanawalla and Tristi Rodriguez. In fact, most predict that Golden State’s dealing of Kuminga would be centralized around clearing up their cap space. ClutchPoints’ Garrett Kerman have linked him to the Heat, proposing an even worse package than the one reported from the Kings, and only slightly sweetened in concept by Yahoo Sports’ Caleb Hightower. It’s clear to see that the potential the Warriors see in Kuminga hasn’t ripened enough to entice other teams to offer something more for him.

And that is why the actual smart move for Golden State is to keep him. Yes, Kuminga regressed pretty far in 2025. Yes, he is a bad fit for Steve Kerr’s system. But Kuminga has shown enough flashes to persuade at least Golden State’s front office of his eventual stardom. And despite their cap issues, Kuminga’s not getting a max, and Golden State is eligible to match whatever offer he receives.

And not to mention the elephant in the room, but Steph Curry’s retirement is coming sooner rather than later. Without Steph, Golden State has nothing to build on for the most part. And while Steph remains, the Warriors will always be in contention for a spot in the postseason, meaning that Golden State’s upcoming draft picks will have poor odds of developing into superstars — not that any of their drafting has been any good anyway post-Big Three. And while Kuminga’s potential remains high, the only basement dweller that might even consider trading their draft capital for him isn’t even on his list of meetings in Vegas, per Sports Illustrated’s Kyler Fox.

Like it or not, Kuminga is Golden State’s future. And they would be wise to not overthink it — or him.