The Golden State Warriors are locked in a stalemate with restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga, as Kuminga wants to leave the franchise while the Warriors are determined to bring him back for the right price. So, what’s one more restricted free agency battle?
NBA insider Jake Fischer revealed on his most recent stream for Bleacher Report that the Warriors have expressed interest in Chicago Bulls guard Josh Giddey, who is also in a free agency stalemate with his team.
“There have been multiple teams who have reached out to Josh Giddey’s representation about having interest in Josh Giddey. Golden State is one of them. 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.”
Josh Giddey’s Contract Dilemma
Giddey has been searching for a contract around $30 million per year, similar to Kuminga’s asking price, but the Bulls haven’t been willing to get to that price. They want to lock him in around $20 million per year, but Giddey is looking around at contracts like Immanuel Quickley and Jalen Suggs, thinking he’s worth that.
Both of these scenarios are very similar. Kuminga and Giddey think they have more value and leverage than they really do, and they’re willing to wait until they get a contract that maximizes their value.
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Fischer also went on to explain that the Warriors thought the Oklahoma City Thunder were taking Jonathan Kuminga in 2021, and they would’ve selected Giddey with the next pick.
“The Warriors were prepared on draft night way back when in 2021 for Jonathan Kuminga to go number six to Oklahoma City, and they were ready to take Josh Giddey number seven,” Fischer said.
“But the order, of course, was flipped, Giddey went number six to OKC, and the Warriors happily took Kuminga, but there was very much a world where the Warriors would have taken Josh Giddey number seven if Kuminga was off the board,” Fischer added.
How Chicago Got Here With Josh Giddey
The Chicago Bulls traded Alex Caruso straight up for Josh Giddey a year ago. Caruso became an instrumental part of the Oklahoma City Thunder, helping them win their first official NBA championship this season.
Meanwhile, Giddey struggled to work himself in with the Bulls initially, but that changed when they traded Zach LaVine to the Sacramento Kings. After the All-Star Break, Giddey averaged 21.2 PPG, 10.7 RPG, and 9.3 APG, as the LaVine trade freed up the offense for everyone. The team also showed some signs of life, making the Bulls confident that they could go into next season with a similar roster.
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