Did the Lakers dodge a Jonathan Kuminga bullet? ESPN personality weighs in

The Los Angeles Lakers missed out on Jonathan Kuminga this week, and at least one ESPN voice thinks that is a good thing. After Kuminga agreed to a two-year, $13 million deal with a player option to join the Minnesota Timberwolves, ESPN Los Angeles host Deondre Hawkins made the case that the Lakers are better off without him.

“I truly believe the Lakers dodged a bullet by not signing Jonathan Kuminga,” Hawkins said, quickly clarifying that the take had nothing to do with the forward’s ability.

Did the Lakers make the smart decision by not signing Kuminga? pic.twitter.com/oaoFwrrgHB

— ESPN Los Angeles (@ESPNLosAngeles) August 26, 2026

The concern, instead, was fit. Kuminga is a ball-dominant, athletic scorer, and the question was how he would slot in next to Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves in an offense that already runs through those two. “The Lakers can move forward with the team that they already have constructed and continue to build that chemistry,” Hawkins said.

Kuminga reached free agency after Atlanta declined his team option in June, closing a brief stint with the Hawks that followed his messy exit from Golden State. That backdrop fed a second concern, one about motivation. On his new short-term deal, Kuminga enters the season needing to prove himself and angling for a bigger long-term payday.

The worry was that such a chase could work against the continuity Los Angeles built this offseason rather than add to it.

For Minnesota, Hawkins saw the signing differently, calling it a smart, low-risk move for a team that stays young and adds a high-upside piece. Kuminga is expected to start alongside Anthony Edwards, LaMelo Ball, Jaden McDaniels and Rudy Gobert, giving the Timberwolves one of the more athletic starting fives in the West.

That, of course, cuts both ways. Hawkins acknowledged that a Wolves team already built to contend will remain squarely in the Lakers’ path in a loaded conference, Kuminga or not.

Whether Los Angeles truly dodged anything will not be settled until the games begin. Kuminga reportedly chose Minnesota’s player-friendly deal over interest from the Lakers, who by some accounts offered more, a decision that says plenty about how he views his own situation.

For now, the Lakers appear content to run it back and let the chemistry do the talking.

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