If Jonathan Kuminga’s current free agency process wasn’t already complicated enough, another layer has been added to the mix with the Golden State Warriors reportedly holding shock interest in Josh Giddey.

The shock derives from the fact that Giddey himself is in the same situation as Kuminga — a restricted free agent where the market isn’t aligning to his contract desires. Given base-year compensation rules impacting both players, a double sign-and-trade appears so difficult that it’s quite stunning that this has emerged.

The Warriors will grant Steve Kerr his wish with a Giddey-Kuminga trade

NBA insider Jake Fischer reported the explosive news on Thursday, stating that the Warriors would be interested in swapping the two restricted free agents if there was a possible pathway to making it happen.

“Golden State would be interested depending on how the machinations could go in some type of Josh Giddey-Jonathan Kuminga sign-and-trade to my understanding,” Fischer said.

While it’s shocking based on just how complicated the entire scenario is, it’s much less so when considering the type of player that Giddey is and particularly in comparison to Kuminga.

The raw, athletic, score-first nature of Kuminga has struggled to consistently fit within Steve Kerr’s motion offense over the last four years, only becoming more problematic upon Jimmy Butler’s arrival to the Warriors in February.

In complete contrast, Giddey utilizes his high IQ and passing wizardry to cut opposing defenses apart, having averaged a career-high 7.2 assists once given the keys to the Chicago Bulls offense last season.

Fischer noted that Golden State were keen on drafting Giddey seventh overall in the 2021 draft, before the Oklahoma City Thunder pounced with the prior selection. It’s not difficult to see now why the Warriors were interested in Giddey leading up to the draft, with the Australian projecting as a prototypical Kerr player given his ball-handling and playmaking craft.

The shooting would be an enormous concern alongside Jimmy Butler and Draymond Green, but the Warriors would have that anyway with Kuminga, plus Giddey did show some improvement in that area after shooting a career-high 37.8% from 3-point range on four attempts per game last season.

What the 22-year-old would do is lessen some of the ball-handling and playmaking burden that Curry currently faces, something that could become really important as the 2x MVP enters his age 38 season.

Giddey is also a consistently willing rebounder in a way Kuminga hasn’t really captured, having 8.1 last season and 7.5 for his career as a nightly triple-double threat. He averaged 14.6 points, 8.1 rebounds and 7.2 assists last season, leading to his desire for a contract around $30 million per year this summer.

Swapping Kuminga for Giddey would be a wish come true for Kerr and the way he approaches the game of basketball, but making it happen still feels like a far-fetched idea that will take the Warriors relinquishing other players and assets.