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With February 8 drawing closer and closer, the circulating NBA trade rumors become hotter with each passing day. Among the teams that find themselves in the discussions regarding making a move before the trade deadline is the Golden State Warriors, who somehow find themselves in the 12th spot in the West after entering the season thinking they would be contenders.
According to the trade rumors that have been going around all season long, everyone on their roster was available, including core dynasty members Draymond Green and Klay Thompson, with the only exception being Steph Curry.
However, it seems that the Warriors' front office has decided that there is another player they would like to keep off of trade discussions after a recent string of fantastic performances: Jonathan Kuminga.
As per NBA insider Michael Scotto on the HoopsHype podcast, the Warriors want a treasure trove of assets back if they were to let him go.
"The Warriors are pleased with the growth of Jonathan Kuminga this season and are reluctant to trade him..." Scotto said. "Theoretically, it would take a package involving an All-Star player or an overpay of draft picks for Golden State to even consider trading him."
This season, the 21-year-old Kuminga has shown improvement in several aspects of his game, but his most noticeable improvement is in his offense. In his first two seasons in the league, he never averaged more than 10 points per game in a season.
This year, he made a sudden leap forward in scoring, averaging 14.3 ppg in 41 games. Despite his increase in scoring, he has maintained his field goal percentage above 50%, similar to his first two years in the league.
Meanwhile, Golden State hopes to turn their season around by making some moves at the deadline, keeping Kuminga out of the NBA trade rumors. At the same time, he displays that his noticeable improvement might pay off for them as they look toward building for the future past their Curry, Thompson and Green era.
Amidst NBA trade rumors, Jonathan Kuminga had a perfect night from the field against Atlanta Hawks
The Warriors were faced with a game that felt like a must-win situation on Wednesday when they took on the Atlanta Hawks not only for their record but also because it was their first game back since the sudden death of assistant coach Dejan Milojevic.
As usual, Steph Curry led the way, dropping 25 pts on 5-for-8 shooting from three. Klay Thompson also looked like his old self, adding 24 while shooting 5-for-10 from the field.
Despite these two great performances, perhaps the best player in that game was Jonathan Kuminga, who came off the bench to score 25 points while shooting a perfect 11-for-11 from the field.
Even though he kept being mentioned in NBA trade rumors, Kuminga played another great game to help his team secure a much-needed win.
