When the Atlanta Hawks declined Jonathan Kuminga's team-option for the 2026-27 season, they understood the very real possibility that he could end up walking for nothing.
They'd love to be able to either bring him back, or get a valuable asset or two in a sign-and-trade with him as the centerpiece, but he could always just sign elsewhere. As more time passes, though, his options are becoming more and more limited, with some sticking out more than others.
On Monday morning, ESPN's Shams Charania revealed that Los Angeles Lakers forward Rui Hachimura "agreed to a two-year, $28 million deal to sign with the Los Angeles Clippers," giving the Jonathan Kuminga sweepstakes its most obvious suitor yet.
Lakers have every reason to pry Kuminga away from Atlanta
After a series of bold moves to improve their roster - trading for Walker Kessler, signing Sandro Mamukelashvili, Quentin Grimes and Collin Sexton - the Lakers are still left with a glaring roster hole. They don't have a starting-caliber power forward.
Hachimura was expected to be that guy, and the Lakers clearly had interest in bringing him back, but they were unable to strike a deal in enough time, making the realisticness of them aggressively pursuing Jonathan Kuminga that much stronger.
Kuminga matches everything the Lakers are trying to build, but he wouldn't come at a discount. They're running incredibly low on cap space, meaning in order to bring in a guy of Kuminga's caliber, they would have to engage in a sign-and-trade - likely parting with a player or two towards the back-end of their expected rotation.
Any combination of Jake LaRavia, Jarred Vanderbilt and Dalton Knecht would have to be on their way to Atlanta in order for a deal to get done; barring them cutting or salary-dumping one of them to create the necessary space.
Hawks don't have much leverage here compared to other situations
The strongest part about most of the transactions President of Basketball Operations Onsi Saleh has gone through with during his early Atlanta tenure is the leverage he's held.
After declining Kuminga, though, he and the Hawks' staff understood what they were getting themselves into.
The more time passes, the more likely it becomes that Kuminga won't just walk for nothing. His talent is absolutely something worth taking a risk for, but the Hawks may very well not be the team to do so.
Gaining assets in exchange for him in a sign-and-trade would be the most intelligent path forward, and if they choose to do so, the Los Angeles Lakers make all the sense in the world as a partner.
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