Looney’s progress has been invaluable
In 4th season, UCLA alum is key in center rotation
When Warriors big man Kevon Looney returns to his locker stall at halftime, he picks up his iPhone to find a text or two from his father, Kevin.
Sometimes Kevin has highlighted a box-out Kevon missed. Other times, Kevin simply reminded his son to be quicker switching off screens. The underlying message, however, is the same: To stay on the floor, Looney must limit his mistakes.
Those fatherly pointers have been a staple of Looney’s halftime routine since his lone season at UCLA. Now in his fourth year with Golden State, he credits them for helping him carve out a key spot in the backto-back NBA champions’ rota-
tion.
Looney isn’t one of the Warriors’ most athletic players, but he is one of their most reliable. Seldom is he out of position defensively or slow to crash the offensive glass. At just 22, Looney’s basketball IQ belies his youth.
“He’s always had the basketball mind and the feel,” said Warriors head coach Steve Kerr, who has started Looney the past two games at center. “The last couple of years, he’s put himself in a place physically where he can match his mind.
“Now we’ve got a guy who can stay out on the floor, defend against anybody, set great screens, get offensive rebounds and execute our offense. We’re lucky to have him.”
Looney’s dependability is especially valued this season, when Golden State is leaning on him, Damian Jones and Jordan Bell to anchor the interior until DeMarcus Cousins returns from his torn left Achilles tendon. With Jones and Bell still learning all that the NBA demands, Looney is a stabilizing force, making subtle plays to keep the Warriors from veering into chaos.
His per-game averages — 5.9 points and 5.0 rebounds in 18.4 minutes — won’t wow, but he is consistently where he needs to be for a putback dunk, a momentum-shifting block or a timely screen. In addition to shooting 60 percent from the field, Looney has committed multiple turnovers in only three games this season.
Golden State is just thankful it still has him. After emerging last season as the team’s best small-ball center, Looney was widely expected to land an offer elsewhere that the Warriors — already deep into the luxury tax — couldn’t match. Only after learning that few franchises needed a free-agent big man did he decide to re-sign with Golden State on a one-year minimum deal of $1.6 million.
“He’s one of the smarter players in this league, especially for his age,” forward Andre Iguodala said. “I was really surprised that he came back, actually. It just shows you there aren’t too many smart scouts out there.”
Looney traces his best basketball skill — limiting mistakes — back to his childhood. As a second grader on a Milwaukee-area Amateur Athletic Union team called the Running Rebels, he learned all the fundamentals from head coach Brian Jonakin. Blow a box-out, and Looney risked running laps around the court.
During the summer before Looney’s freshman year of high school, the Running Rebels often logged nine-hour workouts reviewing such basics as the proper angle to take on a steal attempt or when to help a teammate defensively. Only after those 8 a.m.-to-5 p.m. sessions did they finally play games.
Early in Looney’s career at Milwaukee’s Alexander Hamilton High School, head coach Tom Diener made sure he understood that reliable defense was the only way to get on the floor. Looney’s performance in the daily shell drill — an exercise that focuses on defensive fundamentals — helped him crack the starting lineup of a senior-laden team as a freshman.
Looney used an old-school playing style to become a McDonald’s All-American, Wisconsin Mr. Basketball and a consensus top-15 recruit nationally. Then in the summer of 2014, during a scrimmage at UCLA, Bruins guard Isaac Hamilton crashed into the right side of Looney’s right leg, injuring Looney’s hip.
Hip issues would plague him for years, hurting his draft stock, requiring multiple surgeries and forcing him to adapt his game. Because he had a tough time changing direction, Looney became a master at taking the best angle to beat his defender to a certain spot. UCLA assistant coach Ed Schilling drilled him on pain-free ways to slide defensively.
The hip problems cost Looney much of his rookie season with the Warriors, but he’s made up for lost time. He has shed 30 pounds, overhauled his diet, taken up Brazilian jiujitsu and emerged as the ideal role player on a roster loaded with All-Stars. It helps that, in addition to the likes of Iguodala, Kevin Durant and Draymond Green, Looney can get pointers from his father.
Looney’s parents moved to the Bay Area more than three years ago to help their son acclimate to the NBA and recover from hip surgery. They live in Walnut Creek, a 25-minute drive from Kevon, and have no plans to leave.
Kevin, a former small-college player who works with adults with special needs in Alameda, attends every home game and catches the rest on TV.
“He’s really good at noticing all the small things,” Kevon said. “He’s been a huge help.”