Warriors, Jonathan Kuminga trade chatter ramps up after latest benching

Jonathan Kuminga’s rotation slide has resurfaced again, and the Warriors are preparing to explore trade options over the next several weeks, according to Anthony Slater of ESPN.

Kuminga didn’t play at all in Sunday’s win in Chicago, even with Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Al Horford sidelined. The decision came a night after Kuminga went 1-of-10 in Cleveland, where Steve Kerr chose Gui Santos over him in the fourth quarter of a close game. Green was seen talking to Kuminga late that night, trying to settle him down.

Kerr didn’t make much of the benching. “Happens to everybody pretty much, other than the stars,” he said. “Guys come in and out of the rotation, depending on who’s available, how the team is playing.”

This is the latest chapter in a five-year tug-of-war between team and player. Kuminga’s restricted free agency dragged into camp, he didn’t receive an outside offer sheet, and his eventual two-year, $46.8 million deal — with a team option he opposed — left what Slater described as “bitter feelings on both sides.”

For a moment, things seemed settled. Kuminga opened the year as the starting power forward and Golden State won four of five. But after the early slide and a stretch of knee tendinitis, his role vanished. Since returning, he’s 12-of-40 from the field.

Kuminga said he spoke with Kerr before Sunday’s game and was told the team is “going in a different direction.”

Whenever his next direction comes, it may be somewhere else. Because of contract rules, Kuminga can’t be traded until January 15, but league sources tell Slater the odds of a deal before the February 5 deadline are “strong.”

The Suns and Kings both explored sign-and-trade options last summer before circumstances changed.

With Curry and Green set to return later this week, minutes will only get tighter.

“I’m going to work out every day and stay ready,” Kuminga said. “You never know how these things work. I believe in my game. I just got to be a professional.”