Golden State Warriors owner Joe Lacob is finally opening up about the tense contract standoff with Jonathan Kuminga that consumed much of the team's offseason, and he's not holding back.
“People had to do the best they could in the negotiations – and they did,” Lacob said on The TK Show. “It's like social media; you have to have a thick skin to deal with all this stuff. I'm angry it didn't happen sooner. I think it could have, maybe should have. But you see, that's the way it goes.”
After months of speculation and tension, the Warriors and Kuminga agreed to a two-year, $48.5 million deal that includes a team option for the 2027-28 season — a structure that gives Golden State future flexibility while locking up one of their most promising young players.
“This thing took a long time — longer than we hoped — but things went the way we thought they would,” Lacob said. “I'm going to move on. That's what it is, but at the end of the day, we got the team we wanted this year and we're happy.”
Despite the frustration, Lacob made it clear he's still fully committed to Kuminga's potential.
“I like him as a person and as a player,” he said. “Obviously, it didn’t quite go with what Steve had in mind at times. [Kerr] Maybe want or want, but sometimes it works out well. We just have to let it play out. Now it's time to play basketball. What happens on the field is what matters. “
Lacob praised general manager Mike Dunleavy Jr. for handling the back-and-forth with Kuminga's camp, led by agent Aaron Turner, who publicly pressured the team to make a trade.
“This is his negotiation,” Lacob said. “I know everyone likes to think I'm controlling every little detail here, but I'm not. It's his job and he does it his way. The bottom line is, he gets the end result that he thinks we're going to get.”
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