The recent reports surrounding the Washington Wizards interest in Jonathan Kuminga makes perfect sense for the position the team is in their rebuild.
Washington has multiple talented young players already on the roster, but primarily they have the spent the majority of their investments on the backcourt with the likes of Bilal Coulibaly, Bub Carrington, Tre Johnson and even AJ Johnson, though they acquired the guard via trade last season.
Obviously, Alex Sarr and Kyshawn George come to mind when thinking about the team’s frontcourt options, but there’s clearly still room for growth in that department.
Sarr has the tools to develop into a two-way star for the Wizards, but he has a far ways to go to develop his game to take the leap Washington needs for him to be that guy, if he can indeed be the cornerstone the franchise drafted him to be.
Meanwhile, George’s role seems to be set for the future as a glorified role player with the versatility to fill in where he’s needed like a Josh Hart-type player.
However, if the Wizards want to take the leap in their rebuilding process to help them get one stop closer to contending in the Eastern Conference, taking a swing on a high-upside player like Kuminga makes perfect sense.
At 22, Kuminga has plenty of room to develop and continue making strides in his game. Even then, younger than multiple incoming rookies from this NBA Draft class, the former G-League Ignite standout has already shown the flashes to be an elite player, even during postseason play with the Golden State Warriors this past season.
Jonathan Kuminga is younger than 14 of the players taken in the 2025 NBA Draft.
— Andy Bailey (@AndrewDBailey) July 4, 2025
The talent is there and with him still being a young prospect, he’s an ideal candidate for the Wizards to pursue, especially after missing out on both Cooper Flagg and Ace Bailey this past season.
Kuminga would be an ideal running mate in the frontcourt alongside Sarr and with the potential to seriously be a breakout star with increased playing time with the Wizards, a fit would make sense for both sides.
Not to mention, of all teams, Washington has plenty of assets that could intrigue the Warriors in a sign-and-trade deal to bring Kuminga to Washington.
With interest seeming mutual, it seems like there’s at least a solid chance that talks for Kuminga landing in D.C. could intensify as the weekend goes on.
For now, it’s a waiting game to see when a deal could happen. However, it’s fair to say that general manager Will Dawkins is doing his fair share to improve the roster this offseason.