As the Warriors‘ standoff with restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga extends into late August, the team remains “very confident” about its ability to eventually sign free agent center Al Horford, Jake Fischer said in his latest Bleacher Report live stream on Wednesday (YouTube link; hat tip to Dallas Hoops Journal).
As Fischer outlines, Horford is among several veteran free agents who have expressed a willingness to be patient in waiting for resolution on Kuminga and have been “in full communication” with the Warriors’ front office.
Pointing to veterans like De’Anthony Melton, Gary Payton II, Seth Curry, and perhaps even Malcolm Brogdon as candidates to end up in Golden State, Fischer suggests that those players would likely receive minimum-salary contracts if they sign with the Warriors, whereas Horford would probably be in line for a more lucrative deal.
“Al Horford’s situation is a bit different,” Fischer said. “Because, depending on where the Warriors land in a cap/tax situation, I believe he is slated to make upwards of the full taxpayer mid-level exception. There has also been some discussion about whether or not he could potentially be receiving a two-year deal with a player option as well.”
Fischer adds that the Warriors envision Horford having a “pretty major role” in their rotation. That lines up with previous reporting from ESPN’s Anthony Slater, who has indicated that the 40-year-old would likely slot in as the team’s starting center.
Using any portion of the mid-level exception would hard-cap the Warriors at the second tax apron — that could put them at risk of losing Kuminga, since a rival suitor could look to open up cap room to sign the RFA forward to an offer sheet Golden State wouldn’t be able to match. As a result, the Warriors are putting off the rest of their offseason business until they either re-sign or sign-and-trade Kuminga and have a clearer picture of their cap situation.
Depending on what happens with Kuminga, the Warriors should have either the taxpayer or even a portion of the non-taxpayer mid-level exception available to them.
For instance, if Kuminga accepts the rumored two-year, $45MM offer Golden State has put on the table, the club would be roughly $14.9MM below the second apron with 10 players under contract and would have the ability to offer Horford the full $5.7MM taxpayer mid-level exception while still filling out the rest of its roster with minimum-salary players.
If Kuminga were to sign his $7.98MM qualifying offer, Golden State would have about $17MM in breathing room below the first apron and could theoretically go a little above the taxpayer portion of the MLE to sign Horford. But that would result in a first-apron hard cap, which the front office may look to avoid.
Fischer warns that Kuminga’s free agency may remain unresolved well into September, since the deadline to accept his qualifying offer won’t arrive until October 1.