It’s still early in the NBA season, but the Sacramento Kings are already being linked to Golden State Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga–again.
The Kings (6-18) are off to one of their worst starts in franchise history, while the Warriors (13-12) have continued to hover around the .500 mark as they search for stability amid injury troubles to key players like Stephen Curry and Al Horford.
While Sacramento and Golden State continue to progress into the regular season on different paths, those paths may converge as discussions about Kuminga’s future heat up in the coming weeks and months.
Jonathan Kuminga, who was a hot topic of conversation during the offseason, was courted by the Kings in restricted free agency, but sign-and-trade talks with the Warriors never came to fruition.
Instead, the 23-year-old forward inked a two-year, $46 million (club option for 2026-27) deal to return to Golden State, although it is widely speculated that Kuminga inked the short-term deal as a way of ensuring he gets back to free agency sooner rather than later.
The Warriors will discuss trades for forward Jonathan Kuminga as early as Jan. 15, when he is eligible to be dealt, per @ShamsCharania.
Kuminga’s $22.5M salary could be used in bigger trade scenarios. pic.twitter.com/bYijXPzFZe
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) December 9, 2025
According to ESPN’s Anthony Slater, Jonathan Kuminga felt forced to accept the team-friendly deal, with negotiations leaving bitter feelings on both sides.
On the heels of last season, where Kuminga and Golden State head coach Steve Kerr often made headlines due to the former top-ten pick’s lack of playing time, a similar conversation has come to the forefront over the past couple of days.
Kuminga logged a DNP-CD on Sunday during the Warriors’ win over the Chicago Bulls, his first game of the season that he didn’t appear in that was unrelated to injury.
“Happens to everybody pretty much, other than the stars,” Kerr said about not playing Kuminga in Chicago. “Guys come in and out of the rotation, depending on who’s available, how the team is playing.”
More on Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga
As Jonathan Kuminga and Golden State return to a familiar place in dysfunction, the Sacramento Kings continue to lurk as a potential destination for the disgruntled forward.
ESPN’s Marc Spears shared this week that the Kings remain interested in acquiring Kuminga via trade, but added that Sacramento’s original offer may look different this time around.
“I know the Sacramento Kings are still interested,” Spears said on a broadcast of ESPN’s NBA Today. “They [offered] Malik Monk and a first [round pick] before, but I don’t think that first will be available anymore.”
The Sacramento Kings continue to have interest in acquiring Jonathan Kuminga, but while Malik Monk might still be available in a package, the previously included first-round pick is no longer expected to be part of Sacramento’s offer, per @MarcJSpears. pic.twitter.com/Dnup4wX6VF
— APHoops (@APH00PS) December 8, 2025
It’s no surprise that the Kings, who are currently on pace for a top-five pick in a loaded 2026 NBA Draft, are unwilling to part with present or future draft compensation as they look ahead to the future.
Adding a young, athletic forward to pair with fellow forward Keegan Murray appears to be a goal of this new front office that first-year GM Scott Perry heads, and Jonathan Kuminga fits the bill as a player who can slot into the power forward spot going forward.
Whether the Warriors have interest in acquiring Monk or DeMar DeRozan, two players whose salaries can come close to or match Kuminga’s $22.5 million, remains to be seen, but it appears the interest is there on Sacramento’s end.
However, unlike summer’s sign-and-trade negotiations, Golden State doesn’t have to take or leave Sacramento’s offer for Kuminga–they can shop him around to the rest of the league and look to swap him for another $20+ million talent.
Jonathan Kuminga isn’t eligible to be traded until January 15th, but expect his name to be heavily mentioned in rumors between now and then as the February 5th trade deadline approaches.
Over 17 games this season (13 starts), Jonathan Kuminga is averaging 12.4 points and a career-best 6.4 rebounds per game on 43 percent shooting from the field and 32 percent from downtown.
More Sacramento Kings content from Sactown Sports
The Sacramento Kings somehow managed to fall to one of the three NBA teams with a worse record than them this season, suffering a 116-105 loss in Indiana on Monday night.
Falling 19 in the first half by repeatedly sending their opponents to the free-throw line proved too much to overcome, despite a respectable second half.
Westbrook led Sacramento with a triple-double (24 points, 14 assists, 13 rebounds), and DeRozan added 20 of his own as well. But allowing their opposition to jump out to a 19-point lead early and 26/28 from the free-throw line was too much to overcome.
Despite managing a higher field-goal percentage than the Pacers, the difference in shooting 7/22 from three compared to Indiana’s 14/35 was apparent.
Sacramento fought to make it close late, but their horrific start led to another loss, leaving them 6-18 against the Pacers with an identical record.
The Sacramento Kings will head back home after a 2-1 road trip to face the Denver Nuggets on Thursday afternoon.
Coming off what may have been their best win of the season, the Sacramento Kings had a horrific start to their Monday night action in Indiana.
After heavily relying on Zach LaVine’s 42-point performance in Miami, the team and its teammates struggled to maintain any sort of consistency on either end of the floor.
Playing against an undermanned Pacers team that sat at 5-18 coming into the night, Sacramento looked outclassed. There’s no other way to say it.
Kings head coach Doug Christie had previously criticized their offensive possessions, which included only 1-3 passes, but that felt like all that was on display on Monday.
With tough shotmakers on their roster, some looks went down. Still, their identity was nowhere to be seen — unless you want to argue that their identity is, in fact, being an isolation-reliant offense that doesn’t play respectable defense.
Bennedict Mathurin led the opposition with the aggressive mindset he’s embraced in the absence of former King Tyrese Haliburton.
Kings fail to defeat lesser opponent, suffer 116-105 loss to Pacers
Upcoming Sacramento Kings schedule for the 2025-26 season
Thursday, December 11th – vs. Denver Nuggets – 7:00 PM PT
Sunday, December 14th – @ Minnesota Timberwolves – 4:00 PM PT
Thursday, December 18th – @ Portland Trail Blazers – 7:00 PM PT
Saturday, December 20th – vs. Portland Trail Blazers – 7:00 PM PT
Sunday, December 21st – vs. Houston Rockets – 7:00 PM PT
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