NBA Contract Rumors: Warriors-Kuminga ‘far apart,’ Sengun/Green-Rockets update, De’Aaron Fox bypasses extension

The NBA season is upon us, which means that "rookie extension negotiation season" is also upon us — for a few more days, at least. The deadline for players from the 2021 Draft to sign extensions on their rookie deals is Oct. 21, and there appear to be a few big deals that won't get done in time. That doesn't mean the players are leaving their current teams, it just means they'll likely enter next summer as restricted free agents.

Here are the most recent NBA Rumors on the big names still searching for contract extensions, and whether they'd be better off signing deals now or waiting until next summer for a potentially much larger payday.

NBA Rumors: Warriors and Jonathan Kuminga are still "far apart" on a deal

According to Shams Charania of ESPN, the Warriors front office and emerging wing Jonathan Kuminga aren't particularly close on a contract extension.

In this case, Kuminga absolutely should "bet on himself" and not accept a low-ball offer from the Warriors. Why would he? Golden State is relying on Kuminga to help carry the franchise into a new era, and it's pretty hard to envision the Warriors letting Kuminga walk next summer no matter the asking price.

After a breakout year in 2023-24 in which Kuminga averaged a career-high 16.1 points per game and shot 52.9% from the floor, he'd be silly to settle for anything less than a near-max extension. Charania said that the Warriors "want to see how he looks, potentially, this season" before committing to Kuminga long-term at a high price tag. If the Warriors believe that Kuminga can turn into the "superstar" player they claim, then it seems silly to wait and see what Kuminga does this season, but to each their own, right?

NBA Rumors: Houston Rockets have two decisions to make

Well, one of them is a pretty easy decision: pay Alperen Sengun as much money as he asks for. Three years into his career, the Rockets young center has already established himself as one of the league's elite centers, and contract negotiations between him and the Rockets shouldn't be complicated.

That doesn't seem to be the case right now, however. Also according to Chrania and ESPN, while there have been contract offers for Sengun and Green that "bring stability," neither deal is a max deal, even though the discussions between Sengun and the team have been "productive."

What more does Alperen Sengun need to show Houston for the team to think he's "earned" a max rookie extension? Is 21/9/5 in his third season not enough? Does Houston think Sengun will regress greatly in year four? This one doesn't make much sense. Questions remain about whether Sengun can lead an elite offense deep in the playoffs, but if those are the kinds of questions you're asking about a 22-year-old, then he's definitely already earned a big bag of cash.

Houston's other first-round pick from 2021, though, is a little more complicated. Jalen Green is a sublime scorer just as often as he's a black hole on offense who can shoot Houston's offense into oblivion. So what do you do with a player like that?

Letting Green walk wouldn't make a lot of sense; he is, after all, a near-20 points per game scorer at just 22 years old. But giving him a max deal feels unnecessary too, as Green can't always be trusted to close out games, and that's not a trait you want from a max contract player. In this case, Houston might be smart to wait and see how Green plays this season, measure the market for him in restricted free agency, and make a decision from there.

De'Aaron Fox turns down contract extension, eyes supermax in 2025

There aren't many times in life when turning down $165 million is a good idea, but De'Aaron Fox found one of them.

His bypassing Sacramento's offer makes a lot more sense when you consider that if he makes an All-NBA team this year, the maximum he can make next summer shoots up to almost $350 million if he signs the "supermax" with Sacramento. And with high hopes for the Kings this year, that doesn't sound too crazy.