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Hoops Rumors Live Chat: 8/5/25
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ARTHUR HILL
11:01
Welcome to this week's chat. We'll get started with a question about Jonathan Kuminga.
Lefty
11:01
Will Warriors get an acceptable sign and trade package for Kuminga or does he sign and stay in a bad situation for him at GS?
ARTHUR HILL
11:08
As a restricted free agent, Kuminga doesn't have much leverage in the situation or much control of his immediate future. Getting traded is obviously his preference, and the Kings are likely his first choice, but the Warriors aren't going to accept a deal without getting valuable assets in return. There was a report Monday that Golden State plans to keep Kuminga for now, which was always the most likely scenario. He'll probably accept their latest offer, which pays him more than taking his QO, and hope for a trade by February. It may not be the best resolution for either side, but Kuminga can help himself by getting off to a good start and raising his trade value.
SA Spurs
11:08
Were you surprised that De'Aaron Fox got a four year max deal from the Spurs? What's the long term plan there for Fox, Harper, and Castle?
ARTHUR HILL
11:19
The extension was likely promised, at least implicitly, when San Antonio traded for Fox in February. No one suspected at the time that the Spurs would get lucky in the lottery and wind up with Dylan Harper. Victor Wembanyama was shut down a couple weeks after Fox arrived, so we barely got to see them play together. The Spurs are going to want to evaluate them for a least a season before making any decisions on their backcourt. My guess is that Harper becomes San Antonio's best lead guard pretty quickly and will be Wemby's long-term running mate. Fox's new contract makes him expensive, but he's still young enough to be a good trade investment and there are plenty of teams that need point guard help. I think he'll eventually be moved for other assets.
Giannis Antetokounmpo
11:19
Am I really still evaluating whether the Bucks are a title contender? That made sense before free agency but I should have a pretty good idea of what the team will look like now. There aren't really more moves to make.
ARTHUR HILL
11:29
General manager Jon Horst did everything he could to convince Giannis to stay, re-signing nearly all the team's free agents and getting creative by waiving and stretching Damian Lillard's contract to open enough cap space to add Myles Turner. The effort was admirable, but it doesn't make the Bucks real title contenders, and I think Giannis knows that. It's curious why his camp keeps leaking these reports to Shams Charania instead of making an actual trade request. I know he doesn't want to become a villain in Milwaukee, but nothing is going to change until he tells management he wants to be dealt. If Giannis is serious about winning another NBA title before retirement, that's his only course of action because it's not going to happen with the Bucks.
Guest
11:30
Are the Lakers really hoping to land a star in 2027 free agency with cap room? No one changes teams like that anymore, especially not superstars like Jokic or Giannis
ARTHUR HILL
11:41
Jokic and Giannis are the headliners of what could become a historic free agent class, and there are plenty of other names as well. Donovan Mitchell, Anthony Davis, Trae Young, Karl-Anthony Towns, Jimmy Butler, James Harden and more are currently slated to be on the market in two years. But most of them will probably be signed to extensions before that happens, which makes it a risky strategy for L.A. However, the chance to join Luka on one of the league's glamor teams may change the equation. We know players talk all the time about teaming up, so Luka will probably be doing a lot of recruiting over the next two years. The Lakers always manage to get stars, so I think this will work out for them.
JD
11:41
Thoughts on the change from TNT to NBC & Amazon for next season? Will we get a better game presentation?
ARTHUR HILL
11:50
NBC is putting together an All-Star studio team with hosts such as Tracy McGrady, Carmelo Anthony and Vince Carter, along with Michael Jordan as a special contributor. They're all engaging personalities who'll bring a fresh perspective stemming from their Hall of Fame careers. It's clear that NBC cares about the product and wants to make a strong impact after being away from the game for so long. A lot of older fans have fond memories of the network's NBA coverage in the 1990s, and I think they'll like what they see from the new broadcast team.
Jonathan Kuminga
11:50
How much longer will my restricted free agency drag on? Who budges first, me or the Warriors?
ARTHUR HILL
12:00
The Warriors are making it clear that they're in no hurry to get the situation resolved. Kuminga's qualifying offer is good through October 1, so I don't anything to happen before then unless he accepts the team's latest contract offer, which is $45MM over two years with a team option on the second season. Kuminga may not like his current choices, but there's not much he can do to improve them. He can't force a trade, and none of the teams pursuing him have the cap room to give him an offer sheet. The Warriors reportedly still believe in Kuminga and won't give him away cheaply. He'll have to hope his agent can convince the team to improve its offer or accept the gamble of playing one season on the QO.
Thanks for the great questions. We'll talk again next week.
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