Getty Golden State Warriors big man Kevon Looney addresses the media after Game 2 of the 2022 NBA Finals.
It may not register with the casual fan or people whose focus lies with other teams, but the real ones know — Kevon Looney is an integral piece of the Golden State Warriors‘ process. And it was never more evident than during the 2022 NBA Playoffs, particularly in the Western Conference Finals.
Over five appearances against Luka Doncic and the Dallas Mavericks, Looney averaged 10.6 points, 10.6 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game while connecting on 70.6% of his field-goal attempts.
Even now, though, the Dubs’ unassuming workhorse is catching people off-guard with his skill and physicality.
The latest baller to do the Looney double-take: none other than Warriors rookie Patrick Baldwin Jr., who revealed during a recent radio appearance that it was the veteran pivot — not Steph or Klay or one of the other household-name guys — who gave him his first rude awakening to the pro baller reality.
Baldwin Shook by Looney’s Brutal Screens
Baldwin and fellow rookie Ryan Rollins sat down with 95.7 The Game’s Damon & Ratto on Thursday. And among the myriad topics that were touched upon was the moment when each player realized they had ascended to a higher, harder level of hooping; their NBA wake-up call, if you will.
For Baldwin’s part, the moment came when he was hit with all 6-foot-9 and 235 pounds of a Looney pick for the very first time.
“I think my first experience — and I’m sure Ryan has had to get through Kevon Looney screens a couple times,” Baldwin Jr. said. “I’m guarding the wings and the guards and switching on the guards and then boom — you get hit with a Kevon Looney screen and it’s like a rock.
“So that was kind of my ‘Welcome to the NBA!’ moment just physicality-wise, but Kevon sets great screens.”
First-year ballers and his own teammates aren’t the only ones who have been prompted to shout out Looney’s low-key imposing style or grit, though. A few days earlier, it was a bona fide Hall of Famer doing the deed.
KG Goes on Epic Looney Rant
Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce and former Warriors Matt Barnes and Stephen Jackson went deep on the upcoming 2022-23 NBA season with the preview episode of the Certified Smoke podcast. And while discussing the expectations for former No. 2 pick James Wiseman, KG went on an incredible rant about Looney.
Said the 15-time All-Star:
“[Wiseman] doesn’t have Looney’s balls or Looney’s heart. [Looney is] gonna fall eight times, grab the rebound, guard [Anthony Davis], guard f*****g [Nikola Jokic], guard f*****g [Joel Embiid]. He don’t give a f**k. What are you, about 25 years old? Looks like he’s 72 years old out there in that m**********r…
“I started watching him and he do all the little, small stuff.”
Looney averaged 6.0 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 21.1 minutes per contest last season as the Dubs starting center. He was also the only player on the team to appear in all 82 regular-season games, as well as all 22 of the team’s postseason contests.
For his efforts, Golden State rewarded him with a three-year, $22.5 million contract over the summer.