Butler Hints at Good News Amid Kuminga-Warriors Drama

Golden State Warriors star Jimmy Butler expressed confidence Monday that the franchise and restricted free agent Jonathan Kuminga would eventually reach an agreement, drawing from his own experience navigating a contract standoff.

“Like, I tell everybody who asks me, not even from the media, just random people, my friends, I’m not in on it, you know? I hope it gets resolved,” Butler told reporters during media day. “I know what that is like. I’ve been in this league going on 15 years now, and it will get handled. And I know that both sides will be happy in the end. At the end of the day, we all love JK. We all love JK to be happy. We all love this organization to be happy. So we will let JK and this organization figure it out.”

Butler’s comments come as he draws on his own experience last season, when his contract impasse with the Miami Heat ultimately led to his trade to Golden State. He encouraged patience, saying both the player and the team want the same outcome: a resolution that benefits everyone.

Kuminga Holds Out, Leveraging Qualifying Offer

Kuminga, 22, continues to resist the Warriors’ three outstanding contract proposals. According to ESPN insiders Shams Charania and Anthony Slater, Golden State’s most lucrative offers include a two-year, $45 million deal and a three-year, $75.2 million deal, both with team options for the final season. The only offer without a team option is a three-year, $54 million deal.

The forward has threatened to accept the $7.9 million qualifying offer, which expires Wednesday at 11:59 p.m. ET. Taking the QO would make him an unrestricted free agent next offseason and grant him control over any midseason trade due to the offer’s no-trade clause.Kuminga’s agent, Aaron Turner, told

ESPN’s Hoop Collective podcast that the player is leaning toward the QO unless the Warriors convert the team option into a player option. “If he’s treated fairly — and in our mind that’s flipping [the] team option to [a] player option — he’s back, and then we don’t have to talk about the [qualifying offer],” Turner said. “But the QO is real. It’s something that JK wants to take. It does have upside. You’re not getting traded. You’re going to have unrestricted free agency.”

Turner added that giving Kuminga a player option would ensure the forward returns fully engaged.

“If the Warriors want to win now, and they want a player who’s happy and treated fairly, who’s a big part of this team moving forward, you give him the player option,” Turner said. “You might lose a little trade value by giving that up. But if it’s about the here and now, you give him that. You don’t get a perfect deal, but you get a pretty good deal, and he feels respected. Then everyone can move on and focus on winning, helping Steph [Curry].”

Steph Curry Issues Stern Warning

GettyStephen Curry set his expectations for Jonathan Kuminga when he settles his contract standoff with the Golden State Warriors.

As Kuminga’s standoff threatens to disrupt one of Stephen Curry’s remaining championship windows, the Warriors’ 37-year-old star issued a clear expectation for the young forward.

“Negotiations are hard,” Curry told reporters during media day. “We all know that the idea of everybody’s situation is a little different. Everybody comes up with whatever narrative they want to. It’s how business kind of goes. Some things are pretty straightforward. Some things aren’t.

“This is definitely in the hard conversation category, but when he comes and he’s here, he should be a professional and do exactly what he expects to do, and take advantage of his opportunities to help us win everybody who’s in the locker room. That’s what you’re committed to doing. So I don’t have any concerns that he’ll approach it that way, and that’s what we expect.”

Curry’s remarks underscore the Warriors’ emphasis on professionalism and accountability, even as the contract impasse lingers and training camp approaches. The Warriors’ championship window hangs in the balance as the team awaits Kuminga’s decision, with Butler’s steady voice underscoring the importance of keeping both player and franchise aligned.

Anfernee Jennings Speaks Out About Patriots Future in New Defense

He looked like a certain trade candidate or roster cut, but Anfernee Jennings surprisingly kept his place on the 53-man roster for the New England Patriots, despite his struggles adapting to a defensive scheme totally alien to what he’s played in both college and the NFL.

Jennings spoke out about the difficulties he’s experienced and still faces getting used to the changes. The edge defender also made clear how he intends to proceed after his reprieve on roster cutdown day.

At the moment, Jennings is merely relieved to simply be sticking around. He explained to MassLive.com’s Mark Daniels how remaining in New England “means a lot. At the end of the day, at heart, I’m a Patriot. I love being out here. I love playing. I’m looking forward to the season.”

Relief will soon turn to anguish if Jennings can’t master the playbook installed by new head coach Mike Vrabel and his defensive coordinator Terrell Williams.

Anfernee Jennings Still Faces Uphill Battle

There’s a reason Jennings was tabbed as trade bait or tipped to be replaced by a practice-squad player. He simply isn’t a fit for the new direction the Patriots are going in defensively, a shift Jennings hadn’t dealt with even before he entered the pros.

The Pats’ third-round pick in the 2020 NFL draft detailed the differences to Daniels. Jennings pointed out how “this has probably been one of my more difficult – not difficult, but I had a big-time adjustment. I’ve been in a similar defense since college – a 3-4 outside linebacker. Having to learn a new scheme, learning coaches, players, and how to do my job differently, it’s been humbling for me just to be able to do that. I’m looking forward to the season.”

Being a prototypical 3-4 outside ‘backer made Jennings an asset for Vrabel’s predecessors Jerod Mayo and Bill Belichick. The latter long stayed tethered to the principles of a traditional 3-4 scheme, demanding big-bodied linebackers take on offensive linemen and set a wall against the run. It’s also what Jennings played for Belichick confidante Nick Saban at Alabama.

Jennings was still “asked to ‘set the edge’ of the defense. That meant containing the offense’s right or left edge and not allowing people to move upfield” for the Patriots, according to Daniels.

This throwback role brought out the best in Jennings, evidenced by these run stops against the Tennessee Titans last season, highlighted by Taylor Kyles of Patriots on CLNS.

Anfernee Jennings is tied for the NFL lead in run stops (23) and the only ED with more than 20+

Jennings tied a career-high with 5 stops, and his 5 pressures were the 2nd-most in his career

Always been at his best as a rusher when slanting and looping, which showed vs TEN pic.twitter.com/aCI43rf08x

— Taylor Kyles (@tkyles39) November 5, 2024

There’s hops Jennings’ niche skill can still have value for Vrabel, who plans to keep some familiar stuff in this season’s scheme. Yet, Vrabel also wants more of a pass-rushing threat from those up front, including Jennings.

Patriots Have New Priority Defensively

Vrabel and Williams want a more active defensive line to revamp a pass rush that logged a league-low 28 sacks a year ago. It’s why edge defenders will now be “asked to attack and get upfield to the quarterback, according to Daniels, who noted “the Patriots have mainly relied on Harold Landry, K’Lavon Chaisson, and Keion White in that role. Undrafted free agent Elijah Ponder also received reps with the starters.”

Jennings’ absence from that list is telling, but he did flash some comfort with the new system late in preseason. Notably when the 28-year-old was in on three sacks against the Minnesota Vikings in Week 2, with the last of those takedowns highlighted by Ben Brown of The QB List.

More plays like this will be essential if Jennings is going to get onto the field ahead of more dynamic edge-rushers. It won’t be easy, even after Vrabel and general manager Eliot Wolf sent highly touted fifth-round draft pick Bradyn Swinson to the practice squad, per Patriots.com Senior Reporter Evan Lazar.

#Patriots practice squad:

CB Miles BattleG Mehki ButlerG Jack ConleyCB Brandon CrossleyTE C.J. DippreRB Terrell JenningsWR John JilesDE Truman JonesC Alec LindstromDB Kobee MinorDT David OlajigaLB Cam RileyDT Jahvaree RitzieTE Gee Scott Jr.LB Bradyn SwinsonWR…

— Evan Lazar (@ezlazar) August 27, 2025

The former LSU stud has been joined by Truman Jones, another apparent sleeper on the edge who was supposed to be competition for Jennings. There’s now room for Jennings to force his way into the rotation, provided he adds some nuance to his plan as a pass-rusher.

He’s got the frame at 6-foot-2 and 255 pounds, but Jennings is missing the first-step quickness and varied leverage to consistently win around the corner. Those deficiencies are why the veteran told Daniels, “I can only control what I can control. Everything else, I don’t have control over that. I can control my attitude, my effort, and how I show up. That’s how I try to focus.”

That’s the right attitude, but it will take more than hustle for Jennings to stay a factor in a crowded rotation expected to power a more attacking scheme.