The Jonathan Kuminga Trade That Needs To Happen

So much for a sleepy NBA trade season, huh?

The trade market is fully awakened, and locker rooms are suddenly being redecorated around the Association. James Harden is in Cleveland, and Darius Garland has taken up Harden's old residence in L.A. (or at least he will whenever that troublesome toe cooperates). Jaren Jackson Jr. is out of Memphis—and in Salt Lake City, of all places.

Speaking of Memphis, where exactly do the Grizzlies plan on going from here? A Ja Morant trade feels like the obvious priority, but that's really only true if a trade market materializes for the oft-injured former All-Star.

The more interesting question might be who resides on Beale Street once the trade-buzzer sounds on 3 p.m. ET on Thursday. Zach Edey and Cedric Coward are reportedly regarded as "cornerstone players" in the league's latest rebuilding project, per Dallas Hoops Journal's Grant Afseth, but Memphis should be scouring the market for potential building blocks. Because even a draft pick collection this deep probably isn't filling up all of those spots.

That got our trade-machine-manipulating minds wondering whether the Grizzlies might emerge as a sneaky suitor for Golden State Warriors' prime trade candidate Jonathan Kuminga. He's young, athletic and pre-programmed to score, and all that creates speculatory suspicion that maybe Memphis takes a bargain-priced flier on him to see what could happen when he's granted complete control of a young, largely directionless offense.

Full Trade Scenario

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Memphis Grizzlies receive: Jonathan Kuminga, Trayce Jackson-Davis, 2030 second-round pick

Golden State Warriors receive: Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Jaylen Wells

Why the Memphis Grizzlies Do It

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Even with the Grizzlies in the gestation period of this organizational overhaul, it's hard not to notice their lack of high-end, blue-chip young talent. Not to slight Edey and Coward too much here, but if those are your best building blocks, that's not much different than saying you don't have any.

By the way, did anyone else notice Wells' omission from that list? Maybe it was a simple oversight, or maybe Memphis doesn't hold him in the same regard. Edey and Coward, remember, were both lottery picks; Wells lasted until the 39th pick of the 2024 talent grab. And while the former two have been busy turning heads this season, Wells has quietly suffered statistical setbacks nearly across the board.

While the Grizzlies surely aren't going out of their way to find ways to unload him, they might not deem him an essential. And if he's closer to the expendable tier, they could view him as their means to an end—getting one of the league's most intriguing change-of-scenery candidates.

Almost nothing has gone according to plan for Kuminga since landing in Golden State as the seventh pick of the 2021 draft, but he didn't exactly enter the most fertile development program. While only six players were selected above him, 16 from that draft class have subsequently logged more minutes.

The tools that made him such a drool-worthy prospect to begin with haven't diminished a bit. And his scoring punch has only grown more powerful with time. Over the past two seasons, he was giving Golden State 22.2 points per 36 minutes in a perpetually changing (yet always complementary) role.

If the Grizzlies fork over all the touches the Warriors have largely denied him—and with no Jackson and maybe no Morant, why wouldn't they?—maybe the puzzle pieces all align, and Kuminga makes good on his potential yet. Plus, Memphis walks away with a serviceable backup big man in Jackson-Davis and another future second-round pick added to the pile.

The return could be rich (or at least rebuilder-rich), and if the cost is only an overpaid Caldwell-Pope and a seemingly non-essential Wells, that's a wager worth making.

Why the Golden State Warriors Do It

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A Kuminga trade is frankly long overdue and won't be anywhere near as rewarding as the Warriors once hoped. Giannis Antetokounmpo might be the latest star to spurn them at the altar, and even if that dream isn't totally dead, Kuminga's part in it may not run much beyond being an ancillary, salary-matching sweetener.

Well, if Golden State wants to make another run at Antetokounmpo after this deal, Caldwell-Pope could still make the money work, and Wells would serve in the same swap-sweetening fashion.

More than anything, though, the Warriors would do well to finally remove this distraction and get decent value in return.

Caldwell-Pope is overpaid, but he's still playable as a plucky perimeter defender with a usually good (sometimes great) outside shot. And his contract is up after next season. Golden State wouldn't lose Kuminga's salary slot or the capacity to broker a blockbuster trade with it. By this summer, Caldwell-Pope could look legitimately interesting(ish) as a proven pro with an expiring contract and two championship rings to his name.

Wells, who has tallied the seventh-most win shares of his draft class, would be the real prize, though. If he regains his stroke (he's at 32.8 percent from deep this season, down from 35.2 as a rookie), then he's immediately the kind of lanky three-and-D wing every good team needs. That archetype almost never comes cheap.

And it's worth noting that Wells really wouldn't, either. While the Dubs have done a terrible job of asset management with Kuminga, he should still hold decent appeal for the right suitor. Get him away from a system that doesn't seem to suit him and a coach who clearly doesn't trust him, and maybe he becomes the downhill force his tools suggest he's destined to be.

Golden State will never know, though. That ship has obviously sailed. The Warriors still need to make the best of this tough situation, and this trade offers a viable exit ramp.