It’s looking increasingly unlikely that Jonathan Kuminga will find his way to the Sacramento Kings before the start of the season. The Golden State Warriors forward has reportedly been drawing interest from Scott Perry’s team all summer; however, the Warriors have resisted the offers that have been put forward.

According to NBA Insider Jake Fischer, Golden State is reluctant to take back Malik Monk in any sign-and-trade. The Warriors’ issue isn’t Monk’s ability, but rather the player option on the final year of their deal. According to Fischer, the Golden State has its cap sheet set up so that all major contracts come off the books at the same time. Adding Monk would hurt the team’s ability to have flexibility in the summer of 2027, which the team would want to avoid.

“Golden State has made it clear that it has no interest in absorbing Malik Monk’s contract from Sacramento, irrespective of Monk’s talents, if it means taking on Monk’s $21.5 million player option for the 2027-28 season,” Fischer reported. “As much as Golden State hopes to compete for championships over the next two seasons with Stephen Curry, Draymond Green and Butler all on the same contractual timeline, it is also laser-focused on having financial flexibility after the 2026-27 season when the trio’s current contracts are on course to expire simultaneously.”

With Monk seemingly off the table, the Warriors are unlikely to reach an agreement with the Kings before Kuminga’s deadline of October 1, where he must either sign the contract that is currently on the table or ink his qualifying offer. If Kuminga chooses to do the latter, he will become an unrestricted free agent next summer, thus tanking his trade value for the next 12 months.

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Neither Kuminga nor the Warriors have shown a willingness to budge throughout their standoff. Therefore, it’s logical to expect the current negotiations to go right down to the wire.

This post originally appeared on Warriors Wire! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

This article originally appeared on Warriors Wire: Warriors “laser focused” on future cap flexibility