Jonathan Kuminga has found his next team. The 23-year-old forward agreed to a two-year, $12.4 million contract with the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday, August 26, that includes a player option, according to ESPN's Shams Charania. The signing followed a midseason trade and Atlanta's decline of a $24.3 million team option.

A Starting Role Waiting for Him

Kuminga is expected to slot directly into Minnesota's starting lineup at power forward, joining Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball, Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert. The Timberwolves used their $6.1 million taxpayer mid-level exception to complete the signing. According to Charania, Edwards played a significant role in Minnesota's recruitment of Kuminga, while team president Tim Connelly traveled to Miami for a four-hour, in-person meeting, and head coach Chris Finch also worked directly to sell him on the opportunity.

The Los Angeles Lakers had reportedly offered Kuminga a three-year deal worth more than $12 million annually, a larger overall guarantee than Minnesota's offer, and the Chicago Bulls, Sacramento Kings and Portland Trail Blazers were also linked to him at various points this offseason. Kuminga chose the shorter Timberwolves deal instead, which includes a player option that lets him re-enter free agency again next summer. Minnesota's new-look roster is scheduled to face Kuminga's former team, the Warriors, on October 28 in the fifth game of the 2026-27 regular season.

The Path to Minnesota

Golden State selected Kuminga seventh overall in the 2021 NBA Draft, and he spent most of his first five NBA seasons with the Warriors, winning a championship as a rookie in 2022. Across 278 career games with Golden State, Kuminga averaged 12.5 points and 4.2 rebounds per game. His three-point shooting percentage fell from 37 percent to 32.1 percent between his third and fourth seasons. Entering restricted free agency in the 2025 offseason, Kuminga signed a two-year contract with Golden State on September 30, 2025, worth up to $46.5 million with a team option for 2026-27, after a nearly two-month standoff in which he also held a $7.9 million qualifying offer as an alternative.

Kuminga appeared in 20 games with 13 starts for the Warriors that season, averaging 12.1 points, 5.9 rebounds and 2.5 assists on 45.4 percent shooting, before requesting a trade, which the team granted. On February 5, 2026, Golden State traded Kuminga and Buddy Hield to the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for center Kristaps Porzingis. Kuminga appeared in 16 games for Atlanta, averaging 12.3 points and 5.3 rebounds per game, as the Hawks finished 46-36 and reached the playoffs for the first time under head coach Quin Snyder before being eliminated in the first round. Atlanta declined Kuminga's $24.3 million team option for 2026-27 this offseason, making him an unrestricted free agent.

The Roster Move That Cleared the Way

Signing Kuminga wasn't simple for the Timberwolves given their salary-cap situation. Minnesota was hard-capped at the second tax apron and needed to shed additional salary to fully accommodate his new contract. The front office traded wing Josh Green and cash to the Utah Jazz in exchange for forward Cody Williams and guard John Konchar, according to ESPN's Shams Charania. Green had arrived alongside LaMelo Ball in a June 25, 2026, trade with the Charlotte Hornets that sent Naz Reid and multiple future draft picks to Charlotte.

Minnesota is expected to keep Williams on the roster while waiving and stretching Konchar's $6.17 million contract, spreading roughly $2.06 million in dead cap charges across the next three seasons. Guard Donte DiVincenzo, who had also been floated as a possible cap-relief option given his own expiring contract and recovery from a torn right Achilles suffered in Minnesota's first-round playoff series against Denver on April 25, remains on the roster; the front office had been firm about keeping him through the offseason. DiVincenzo's surgery was performed by Dr. Martin O'Malley, the same surgeon who repaired Boston's Jayson Tatum after his own Achilles tear in May 2025, and DiVincenzo is expected to miss most or all of the 2026-27 season.

Atlanta, meanwhile, has already moved on at the position, acquiring guard Kingston Flemings with the eighth overall pick, forward Zuby Ejiofor at 23rd overall, and forward/center Henri Veesaar with the 52nd pick in this year's draft. Golden State's full return from the February trade ultimately amounted to Porzingis, while the Warriors also traded backup center Trayce Jackson-Davis to the Toronto Raptors that same week for the Lakers' 2026 second-round pick.

What Kuminga Brings to Minnesota's Rotation

At 6-foot-7 and 225 pounds, Kuminga is undersized for a traditional power forward. Pairing him with Ball gives Minnesota another athlete in transition alongside Edwards and McDaniels. The team also signed veteran forward Trey Lyles this offseason as a stretch-four option, with Kuminga penciled in as the starter and Lyles in a depth role off the bench. Kuminga has faced Minnesota before at the playoff level: in the 2025 Western Conference semifinals, he averaged 20.3 points on 54.3 percent shooting for the Warriors in a series loss to the Timberwolves.

The Deal's Structure

Financially, the two-year term keeps Minnesota's commitment limited, and the player option gives Kuminga a chance to return to free agency again next summer. Draymond Green, a former Warriors teammate of Kuminga's, called the move "a great opportunity for JK" after the signing was reported.

Minnesota's Offseason Context

The Timberwolves entered the offseason without a starter at power forward on the roster. Minnesota's controlling ownership changed hands earlier this offseason, with businessman Marc Stad completing a $4.5 billion purchase of Marc Lore's majority stake in late August.

Roster Move Clears Path for Training Camp

With the Green-for-Williams-and-Konchar trade completed, Minnesota has cleared the roster spot and cap room needed to formally add Kuminga once Konchar's contract is waived and stretched as expected. Green, who averaged 4.3 points in limited minutes for Charlotte in 2025-26 and was valued primarily for his defense, heads to Utah after arriving in Minnesota's trade for LaMelo Ball on June 25.