It turns out the Chicago Bulls have had their eye on Jonathan Kuminga for a while.
Kuminga entered this summer as a restricted free agent, and his standoff with the Warriors has continued into the third week of September. With the young forward’s future in Golden State up in the air, he has been consistently connected to multiple teams as a potential sign-and-trade target. And this includes the Bulls.
As the Bulls dealt with their own elongated negotiations with Josh Giddey, Kuminga’s name would come up as a potential pivot. He undoubtedly fit the front office’s “young players with experience” mold and would give the franchise another interesting building block. Nevertheless, re-signing Giddey was always the clear priority. The team finally got that done earlier this month, which sure felt like it would put the Kuminga buzz to bed.
Not so fast!
© Cary Edmondson-Imagn ImagesChicago Bulls Tried to Trade for Jonathan Kuminga?
The Stein Line’s Jake Fischer wasn’t ready to take Joanthan Kuminga off the Chicago Bulls’ radar despite Josh Giddey’s latest deal. While the insider did say that he doesn’t expect the two sides to speak this summer, he did suggest that the Bulls could be an interesting landing spot next offseason if Kuminga takes the qualifying offer. We know Chicago will have loads of money to spend and plenty of open roster spots.
Again, the main reason for this seems to be the Bulls’ newfound willingness to accept a youth movement. Not only do they need to take swings on high-upside talent, but they have the roster flexibility needed to give these players the kind of opportunity they need. Kuminga has struggled at times to carve out a consistent role with the Warriors and win the trust of Steve Kerr, especially as the organization remains in win-now mode.
Another reason Fischer should still have his eyes on the Bulls is because of what ESPN shared earlier this week. In a write-up documenting the drama surrounding Kuminga’s talks with the Warriors, ESPN’s Shams Charania said that the Bulls tried to land the former lottery pick over a year ago!
“Lacob has remained a staunch Kuminga supporter and vocal believer in his long-term future. He voiced an unwillingness to include Kuminga in a proposed trade from Chicago for Alex Caruso a couple of seasons back, sources said, and was still glowing about Kuminga’s performance in May after he rose from out of Steve Kerr’s first-round rotation to the team’s leading scorer in the second-round loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves,” Charania wrote.
The Warriors were frequently mentioned as a suitor for Alex Caruso before the Bulls eventually dealt him to the Thunder last offseason. I know it’s not particularly shocking to learn that Chicago apparently asked about Kuminga, but this does further confirm the front office’s long-standing interest.
One has to wonder if Arturas Karnisovas was even willing to do the one-for-one swap with Kuminga as the main piece in place of Giddey. If so, owner Joe Lacob may have saved the Bulls from themselves! Giddey currently appears to be the better bet of the two, especially after his strong closeout to the 2024-25 campaign. Likewise, the former Thunder guard at least had a far more proven track record at the time. Kuminga has left a lot to be desired over his first four years, which would have made trading Caruso for him feel like an even greater risk.
Still, if the Bulls’ front office was ready to trade for Kuminga just last summer, who is to say they would not jump at the opportunity to sign him in 2026 free agency? Indeed, this only makes all the recent ties that much more interesting. I suppose it’s possible that now having Matas Buzelis and Noa Essengue on the roster would deter them from pursuing Kuminga in the future … but you never know! Whether it be all the buzz about Lonzo Ball to Chicago in 2020 or even the months of reported frustration with Zach LaVine, we all know front offices have their types. Kuminga may be a hard name for Karnisovas to forget.
Let’s also not ignore the reports from earlier this summer that said Kuminga wanted to be in Chicago! Might this have simply been some gamesmanship from his agents as they put pressure on Golden State? Absolutely. But Kuminga may have also seen what happened with Giddey. The Bulls are currently a place where young guys can go and see their roles increase.
Anyway, even if none of us expect anything to happen in the coming weeks/months, I would keep Kuminga’s name in the back of your mind. He is clearly someone that this organization has kept tabs on, and this could only continue if he ends up playing on a qualifying offer this season.
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