SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Golden State Warriors found their dependable big man by acquiring Kristaps Porzingis from Atlanta and granted forward Jonathan Kuminga his wish to be traded while also dealing guard Buddy Hield to the Hawks, according to a person with knowledge of the swap.
The person spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Wednesday night because the trade had not yet been approved by the league.
Kuminga sat out Tuesday night's 113-94 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers because of a bone bruise in his left knee, his fifth straight missed game.
The Hawks had listed Porzingis — who has recently missed time with an Achilles tendon injury — as questionable for Thursday's game against Utah because of an illness. Atlanta also acquired center Jock Landale from the Jazz, a person with knowledge of the trade told the AP.
In mid-January, Warriors coach Steve Kerr spoke with Kuminga about being out of the rotation for more than a month and the expectation that he would be traded. However, general manager Mike Dunleavy said on Jan. 20 after Jimmy Butler's season-ending knee injury that there wasn't an immediate indication other teams were interested in Kuminga.
“As far as the demand, I’m aware of that,” Dunleavy said, referencing Kuminga's trade request. “I think when you, in terms of demands, when you make a demand, there needs to be a demand on the market. So we’ll see where that unfolds.”
Kerr discounted any issues between him and Kuminga as the reason the high-flying forward requested a trade after not being used in 17 of 18 games — though he has been listed as injured for nine games this season.
A 23-year-old from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Golden State's seventh overall pick in the 2021 draft, Kuminga appeared in 20 games this season with 13 starts, averaging 12.1 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.5 assists.
On Sept. 30, he agreed to a two-year contract that could be worth up to $46.5 million if the team were to exercise its option for 2026-27. Kuminga had a $7.9 million qualifying offer in hand since June 29 but was also weighing other options and he missed the team's media day.
Kuminga missed much of last season with a right ankle injury. He averaged 15.3 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 24.3 minutes over 47 games with 10 starts. He also scored 15.3 points per game over eight playoff games while shooting 48.4% from the floor and making 40% of his 3-point attempts. That included a career-best 30-point performance in Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals against the Minnesota Timberwolves last May.
The 7-foot-2 Porzingis is averaging 17.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.7 assists. The Warriors will be the sixth team in 10 seasons for the 30-year-old Latvian nicknamed “The Unicorn” for his combination of length and outside shooting touch.
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AP Sports Writer Charles Odum in Atlanta contributed to this report.
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