Karma Karma Karma Karma, Karma Kuminga

[MasterIchiro]

You come and go, you come and go to Charlotte

Disclaimer: This trade is the main part of the Hornets/OKC 2nd round swap last night which works as a stand-alone, isolated deal, but here is connected to the Nuggets and Warriors.

Presti holds an MLE and offers Denver to unload Zeke Nnaji (3.5 years ~8 mil per) in exchange for removal of protections from 2027 & 2029 Nuggets 1sts owed OKC.

Why for Thunder? Unprotected 1sts are worth more than protected 1sts in trades.

Why for Nuggets? Cap flexibility.

Presti calls Hornets who route Micić (1 year with option) to play with Olympic teammate Jokic in Denver. Thunder send Charlotte 2029 Suns 2nd for Denver 2030 2nd to comply with 3 team trade rule.

Hornets take 7.7 TPE and offer GS the Heat 1st (lottery-protected 2027, unprotected 2028) for Kuminga 7.6 million. Add Cody Martin for Payton (1 year) who replaces Micić as tank commander PG2 while LaMelo sits with sore ankle after sore ankle after sore ankle after sore ankle (Hornets fans will understand this piece). Convenient that Kuminga also has a sore ankle. Twinsies?

GS walks away with 8.6 million cap savings, finishes the deal under the tax, and has 2027 Heat 1st plus Martin for a flip for...

Anybody's guess.

[gswhoops]

I’d be pretty shocked if we traded Kuminga for a lottery protected 2027 pick. I don’t see him getting moved unless it’s a consolidation trade for a star.

If just want to duck the tax we can trade Schroder or GP2’s expiring to a cap space team

[MasterIchiro]

I’d be pretty shocked if we traded Kuminga for a lottery protected 2027 pick. I don’t see him getting moved unless it’s a consolidation trade for a star.

If just want to duck the tax we can trade Schroder or GP2’s expiring to a cap space team

The idea here is that you bundle the return with other assets for a star.

You're not doing this primarily for Cody Martin, cap space, tax savings, nor the 2027 Heat 1st (lottery-protected, converts to unprotected 2028).

Kuminga may not fit the budget of one of the rich tax teams shopping stars right now (Suns, Heat, Pelicans all over the tax).

I'm suggesting Kuminga needs to go somewhere (Charlotte) where there are no tax issues for matching some absurd offer from the cash-rich Nets.

[Texas Chuck]

I’d be pretty shocked if we traded Kuminga for a lottery protected 2027 pick. I don’t see him getting moved unless it’s a consolidation trade for a star.

If just want to duck the tax we can trade Schroder or GP2’s expiring to a cap space team

I agree. For the Warriors this would likely be part of a larger deal.

[NW]

I think Kuminga would be a better piece in a package for a star than any of the pieces we get for him in this deal. Heat got Herro and Bam and a shot at adding another key piece with cap space in 2026. That pick won’t be much

[gswhoops]

I guess then my evaluation of this deal is TBD until we see what the bigger deal is.

[MasterIchiro]

I guess then my evaluation of this deal is TBD until we see what the bigger deal is.

Yeah, my thinking is the value of Butler roughly comps with LaVine. The Bulls moved LaVine, received the return of their own 1st as Heat do here, and created cap space by taking on Huerter & Collins on 2 year deals

Warriors would be unloading Wiggins and Kyle Anderson on 3 year deals, preserving draft capital, leveraging Kuminga to pay the extension negotiated for Butler.

Just one example.

But the basic principle can be applied to Ingram too, less to KD, who costs one extra contract like Draymond, plus Warriors draft capital.

[MasterIchiro]

I guess then my evaluation of this deal is TBD until we see what the bigger deal is.

Yeah, my thinking is the value of Butler roughly comps with LaVine. The Bulls moved LaVine, received the return of their own 1st as Heat do here, and created cap space by taking on Huerter & Collins on 2 year deals

Warriors would be unloading Wiggins and Kyle Anderson on 3 year deals, preserving draft capital, leveraging Kuminga to pay the extension negotiated for Butler.

Just one example.

But the basic principle can be applied to Ingram too, less to KD, who costs one extra contract like Draymond, plus Warriors draft capital.

And just now I noticed a RealGM article that says the Warriors are considering Ingram as a contingency plan. Hornets have 33 in 2025 from the Pelicans and 2027 Pelicans 2nd. And again, Kuminga is a flight risk for a team with tax issues like Pelicans.

[Devilanche]

With a catchy title I expect the deal to get delayed and this to happen as the final deal of this trade deadline.


Great song too.

[gswhoops]

(also, as always, A+ work on the thread title)

[MasterIchiro]

(also, as always, A+ work on the thread title)

If I can get a song stuck in your head every day, my day is complete.

[gswhoops]

(also, as always, A+ work on the thread title)

If I can get a song stuck in your head every day, my day is complete.

Do you work backwards from the song to generate the trade, or come up with the title afterwards? Impressive either way tbh.

[MasterIchiro]

(also, as always, A+ work on the thread title)

If I can get a song stuck in your head every day, my day is complete.

Do you work backwards from the song to generate the trade, or come up with the title afterwards? Impressive either way tbh.

No I just get so many songs stuck in my head regardless of the venue. So wherever I travel, the songs follow me.

I sing karaoke and my bag is 100+ songs deep. I have a musical memory where I remember every note and syllable but not always all the words, or even most of the lyrics.

Kind of a local legend in my circuit. I'm just a music junkie. This particular song is in my wheelhouse but I never sang it live in public.

[MasterIchiro]

Here usually I start with the player's name and see if I can rhyme it into a familiar song.

[One_and_Done]

Kuminga doesn't really have any value on the trade market, nor should he. I can't imagine the Warriors being offered enough where they'd eat the bad PR of moving him.

[meekrab]

I’d be pretty shocked if we traded Kuminga for a lottery protected 2027 pick. I don’t see him getting moved unless it’s a consolidation trade for a star.

If just want to duck the tax we can trade Schroder or GP2’s expiring to a cap space team

Can you, though? There's not much cap space out there and you own a 2031 second and pretty much nothing else besides first rounders.