Jonathan Kuminga is back in the NBA rumor mill after the Atlanta Hawks declined their $24.3 team option on the 24-year-old, and the Bulls are reportedly interested in bringing him to Chicago. It's easy to see why this front office would be tempted by an athlete like Kuminga, but the Bulls' collection of promising young forwards would make the fit unnecessarily tricky.
According to Jake Fischer and Marc Stein of The Stein Line (subscription required), Chicago is "expected to show interest" in Kuminga, in addition to their pursuit of Norman Powell and a potential reunion with Anfernee Simons.
Kuminga is a dream fit within Bulls executive VP of basketball operations Bryson Graham's preferred SLAP player archetype — size, length, athleticism and physicality. But that doesn't mean he's a dream fit for the roster Graham is assembling.
Far from it, actually.
Bulls don't make sense as a free agent destination for Jonathan Kuminga
Chicago has been interested in Kuminga dating back to last season and the previous regime under Arturas Karnisovas. The allure of his elite physical traits — a big, strong frame at 6-foot-8, 225 pounds with explosive athleticism and a 6-foot-11 wingspan — is hard to resist.
A lack of skill development and production, however, shouldn't be so difficult to ignore.
After an extended contract dispute between him and the Golden State Warriors, Kuminga was dealt to Atlanta at last year's trade deadline. He averaged 12.3 points and 5.3 rebounds in 22.1 minutes for the Hawks but showed, in flashes, that tantalizing upside.
He scored 27 points and grabbed seven rebounds on 9-of-12 shooting and 3-of-4 from 3-point range in his first game as a Hawk.
He also played in only 36 games last season, shot just 33.3 percent from three, and seems convinced he can be an offensive star given the opportunity.
Both Atlanta and Golden State clearly weren't sold on that plan, so here we are.
In his first draft in charge of the Bulls, Graham selected Caleb Wilson and Dailyn Swain, a pair of SLAP forwards who can't space the floor. They'll slide into the rotation next to Matas Buzelis, a SLAP swingman who can also flip between both forward spots.
Last year's No. 12 pick, Noa Essengue, is a tall, long, athletic player who — you guessed it — can vascillate between the three and the four.
Not only has Kuminga failed to find a role on a successful team, but he would be redundant in Chicago. Graham can't afford to make this kind of mistake.
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