The Cavaliers are still in the mix for Jonathan Kuminga, even after adding Mario Hezonja on Sunday, and the real issue now is not interest - it’s contract structure.
Cleveland agreed to terms with Hezonja on a one-year, $2.8 million deal, but Cavs Roundtable has learned the team remains interested in Kuminga. Around the league, the holdup has been the length of the deal. Under the collective bargaining agreement, a sign-and-trade requires a three-year contract, while Kuminga’s camp is only willing to go below its asking price on a one-year arrangement.
Kuminga is seeking somewhere between $20 million and $23 million per season, though Jake Fischer has reported the number is closer to $25 million.
The Cavaliers have room to work with. They sit roughly $25.3 million under the first apron and just under $38 million under the second.
Cleveland could begin Kuminga at $6.1 million on the taxpayer mid-level exception, which would total $12.4 million over two years. The catch is that using that exception hard-caps the team at the second apron.
That financial flexibility matters because Cleveland is still searching for wing help after Dean Wade left. Wade started 14 of the Cavaliers’ 18 playoff games at small forward last spring before signing with the Philadelphia 76ers this month for four years and $39 million. Larry Nance Jr. is now with the Indiana Pacers on a one-year, $3.9 million deal, and Keon Ellis went to the Brooklyn Nets for two years and $18 million.
Max Strus is expected to open as the starter on the wing. He’s 30, listed at 6-foot-5, and a Jones fracture in his left foot shortened his 2025-26 season.
Jaylon Tyson is the other internal option. Tyson is 23, stands 6-foot-6, and shot 23.7% from 3-point range across 17 playoff games.
Kuminga, meanwhile, has been one of the more complicated names on the market. Atlanta declined his $24.3 million option in June, making this the first time in his career he has reached unrestricted free agency.
The Lakers also face obstacles in their own pursuit, with the Hawks reluctant to take back Jarred Vanderbilt in a sign-and-trade and a third team potentially needed. Rob Pelinka and Lakers coach JJ Redick have met with Kuminga.
Golden State selected Kuminga seventh overall in 2021, and he was part of the Warriors’ championship team as a rookie. His best season came in 2023-24, when he averaged 16.1 points on 52.9% shooting.
Last season, he played 20 games for Golden State and started 13, averaging 12.1 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.5 assists before a bone bruise in his left knee, suffered at Dallas on Jan. 22, ended his run with the Warriors.
Golden State then traded Kuminga and Buddy Hield to Atlanta for Kristaps Porzingis on Feb. 5.
He didn’t make his Hawks debut until after All-Star weekend, but in 16 games with Atlanta he averaged 12.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists in 22.1 minutes. The Hawks lost to the New York Knicks in the first round, and Kuminga shot 5-of-24 from 3-point range in that series.
There are also a few Cleveland ties in the background. Kenny Atkinson was Steve Kerr’s lead assistant in Golden State during Kuminga’s first three seasons, and Kuminga’s agent, Aaron Turner, is from Northeast Ohio. Kuminga also spent part of the 2025 offseason training in Cleveland.
"Jonathan likes the Cavs, likes (coach) Kenny Atkinson, and (star) Donovan Mitchell likes him," Turner told The Athletic last week.
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