Ranking Top Jonathan Kuminga Landing Spots In 2026 NBA Free Agency
Jonathan Kuminga has officially joined the NBA's pool of unrestricted free agents.
According to ESPN's Shams Charania, the Atlanta Hawks have decided to decline the 23-year-old's $24.3 million team option for next season. Kuminga is now free to sign with any suitor he chooses (as of 6 p.m. EST Tuesday, of course).
Where should the tantalizingly talented and maddeningly inconsistent combo forward take his services?
Relative to spending power, potential fit and the rumor mill, here are a handful of landing spots to monitor.
5. Milwaukee Bucks
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The Milwaukee Bucks should be in full-on experimental mode after trading Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Miami Heat. Jonathan Kuminga fits neatly into that second-draft (third-draft?) mold.
Nobody on the Bucks is so ball-dominant that they should flinch at allocating touches to Kuminga. Jaime Jaquez Jr. comes closest, and the Sixth Man of the Year candidate isn't someone to whom you tailor your roster.
Ryan Rollins, Tyler Herro (assuming he sticks) and Brayden Burries each warrant on-ball reps, but they are all useful as floor-spacers away from the rock. Milwaukee even has a stretch 5 in Myles Turner (for now, anyway) to maximize the runway with which Kuminga can operate going downhill.
Aside from needing to stagger Kuminga from Nate Ament and maybe Kyle Kuzma, the logistical pretzel-twisting is minimal. That's more than you can say for many of the other fits. And with ample wiggle room beneath the tax, the Bucks can afford to use part (or all) of their $15 million mid-level exception on a stab-in-the-dark signing.
4. Sacramento Kings
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Few things in life are more certain than the Sacramento Kings lusting after Jonathan Kuminga.
To this end, Andscape's Marc J. Spears says they're expected to show interest in the 23-year-old now that he's a free agent. On the flip side, The Athletic's Sam Amick reports Sacramento does not plan to pursue him.
Forced to choose, we should bet on the Kings continuing to Kings and sniffing around Kuminga again. They don't currently have a young and athletic combo forward comfortable with generating his own shot, and there will be room to redistribute usage if they move on from Domantas Sabonis or DeMar DeRozan (partially guaranteed).
The absolute peak version of Kuminga can lighten the workload for rookie Darius Acuff Jr. Between Maxime Raynaud, Keegan Murray, De'Andre Hunter, Malik Monk and Zach LaVine, the Kings could also have enough shooters at (virtually) every other position to help offset some of JK's worst offensive tendencies and limitations.
Money is the primary roadblock to any pursuit in Sacramento. The Kings remain over the tax even after dumping Devin Carter. They'll need to continue cutting costs if they want to dangle all or part of the $15 million MLE in front of Kuminga.
3. Atlanta Hawks
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Declining Jonathan Kuminga's team option doesn't mean the Hawks are entirely out on keeping him. They may just want to rework his contract.
Atlanta was right up against the tax with Kuminga's $24.3 million salary. It now projects to be $25-plus million under the luxury threshold. That gives the front office more flexibility to pull off trades or use the $15 million mid-level exception without actually entering the tax.
Let's say Kuminga signs for an estimated $15 million himself. The Hawks could then use more than $10 million of the bigger MLE to add another free agent.
Whether investing more reps in Kuminga is the right call remains debatable. He is not the cleanest fit alongside Dyson Daniels, as we saw for stretches during the playoffs, and playing him is bound to come at the expense of Zaccharie Risacher, the No. 1 overall pick in 2024.
Still, for all his flaws, Kuminga did show flashes. If his salary is going to be noticeably lower, we can't rule out a return—particularly if Atlanta has designs on swinging a consolidation trade using other players.
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2. Los Angeles Clippers
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With over $20 million in cap space, room in the rotation for athleticism and rim pressure, and a fuzzy direction that's blurring the line between the bigger picture and immediate aspirations, the Los Angeles Clippers rise toward the top of prospective Jonathan Kuminga landing spots.
Granted, his skill set can be somewhat redundant to Bennedict Mathurin's offensive arsenal. But there's no guarantee the restricted free agent is back. Even if he is, Kuminga wields more size and nuclear athleticism and profiles as a more intriguing target for guards Darius Garland and Keaton Wagler.
The Kawhi Leonard of it all shouldn't impact this thinking by much.
If the Clippers do wind up trading him, they'll have a combo-forward void into which Kuminga can move. If they keep Leonard, Kuminga's downhill thrust could be a useful juxtaposition in tandem minutes, and he remains a solid fit during stretches and games in which Kawhi's not on the floor.
1. Boston Celtics
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Boston Celtics team president Brad Stevens has made it his mission to add rim pressure over the offseason. That largely explains Beantown's dalliance with Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Using a chunk of the non-taxpayer mid-level on a Jonathan Kuminga flier could be a worthwhile contingency. His 5.08 attempts at the rim per 75 possessions last season would have ranked second among the Celtics' non-bigs, trailing only Jaylen Brown's 5.20.
Though Boston cannot count on Kuminga for lights-out spacing, it has the stretch elsewhere to open up the floor for his drives and isos. The Celtics would still be betting on his improvement as a rebounder and defender, but he showed progress last season in the former department.
Rolling the dice on Kuminga is also a hedge against Brown's future. The five-time All-Star remains embedded in trade rumors despite Boston missing out on Giannis. Kuminga doesn't begin to replace his every-level scoring and defense, but having another player who's comfortable working on-ball could come in handy if the Celtics prioritize depth or a star big as the crux of any deal.
Dan Favale is a National NBA Writer for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Bluesky (@danfavale), and subscribe to the Hardwood Knocks podcast, co-hosted by Bleacher Report's Grant Hughes.
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