​The Los Angeles Lakers have known for weeks that acquiring Jonathan Kuminga would require creativity.They now appear to know what it may cost.Speaking on the latest episode of Buha’s Block, Lakers insider Jovan Buha reported that Kuminga’s camp is seeking a contract much closer to $20 million annually than the financial framework Los Angeles had initially envisioned.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisement“My understanding is, again, the Lakers were comfortable at two years, $10 million a year,” Buha said. “That’s below non-taxpayer mid-level exception money. That’s a relatively team-friendly deal. Low risk on the Lakers’ side.”According to Buha, that proposal never gained traction.“I have heard that his camp is looking for closer to $20 million,” Buha said. “Doesn’t have to be exactly $20 million, but closer to that side of the ledger than the $10 million side of the ledger.”The report provides the clearest explanation yet for why negotiations between the Lakers and Kuminga have failed to advance despite mutual interest.Earlier in free agency, the Lakers explored creating approximately $10 million in salary-cap space to sign Kuminga outright to a two-year contract worth about $20 million total, Buha reported.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementKuminga declined that framework, seeking both greater long-term security and a significantly higher average annual salary.Since then, the Lakers’ offseason has moved forward.Los Angeles officially re-signed Austin Reaves and added Quentin Grimes, Sandro Mamukelashvili, Kevon Looney and Ziaire Williams, pushing the club above the salary cap while filling all 15 standard roster spots.Those moves effectively eliminated any path to signing Kuminga outright.Instead, the Lakers now must rely on a sign-and-trade with the Atlanta Hawks if they hope to land the 23-year-old forward.The collective bargaining agreement creates another complication.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementPlayers acquired via sign-and-trade must sign contracts containing at least three guaranteed seasons before any option years, making the Lakers’ original preferred two-year structure impossible.Buha said Los Angeles could theoretically construct a contract with non-guaranteed years later in the deal, but he does not expect Kuminga’s camp to accept that approach.Instead, he suggested a middle ground could emerge.“If it’s a three-year, $45 million deal and it’s $15 million per year, that’s right down the middle of what both sides want,” Buha said.Even if the Lakers and Kuminga ultimately compromise on a contract, another major hurdle remains.AdvertisementAdvertisementAdvertisementAtlanta has to agree to facilitate a sign-and-trade.That may prove just as difficult.The Lakers have limited draft assets after their last two blockbuster trades for Luka Doncic and Walker Kessler. Their most significant remaining asset is a 2032 first-round pick swap, along with three tradable second-round picks, two