Jonathan Kuminga shocked the basketball world Wednesday night, choosing to sign with the Minnesota Timberwolves over the Los Angeles Lakers on a two-year deal with a player option. This move crushed Lakers fans, who felt like they were on the verge of landing the 23-year-old former Golden State Warriors champion.
The “Inevitable” That Never Was
For more than a week, the Lakers were the clear favorites to land Kuminga, especially after the Cleveland Cavaliers acquired Peyton Watson in a sign-and-trade. LA had been chasing Kuminga for two months, and it truly seemed like his move to the purple and gold was “inevitable.” Valentina Martinez of the New York Post even wrote, “Jonathan Kuminga landing with the Los Angeles Lakers seems inevitable at this point. On Tuesday, it appeared Kuminga had three suitors remaining in his free-agent sweepstakes: the Minnesota Timberwolves, Cleveland Cavaliers and the Lakers.” All signs pointed to Kuminga heading to the West Coast, with the Timberwolves as the only real competition left for LA.
The Scramble for a Deal
The Lakers were so sure they had Kuminga locked down, they’d already started revamping their sign-and-trade discussions with the Atlanta Hawks. Atlanta wasn’t interested in taking on Jarred Vanderbilt, so LA was actively looking for facilitators to acquire Jaden Hardy and Dalton Knecht in the trade package, with the Lakers planning to send draft capital to Atlanta. NBA reporter Evan Sidery even posted that “Jonathan Kuminga sign-and-trade discussions between the Hawks and Lakers are picking up steam.” They were going all in, burning through the phone lines to make this happen. It felt like a done deal, right?
Minnesota Strikes Gold, LA Left Empty-Handed
Wrong. Kuminga, who has already made $48 million in his career, completely flipped the script. Evan Sidery called it a “stunning turn of events as Minnesota lands the best remaining unrestricted free agent on the market.” This is absolutely devastating news for the Lakers, who expected Kuminga to be their starting power forward. He chose the Timberwolves because he believed it was the team that gave him the most potential to succeed. Minnesota, coming off a successful offseason, is clearly looking to truly compete for a championship. The Lakers missed out big time, while the Timberwolves certainly struck gold with this signing. It’s a tough pill for LA to swallow after chasing him for so long.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by The Sporting News.
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