Getty Kevon Looney holds the ball in a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Kevon Looney was having a bit of trouble with his defense at the basketball camp the Golden State Warriors big man hosted for kids in Milwaukee.
A video showed one of the young hoopers at camp beating Looney for a layup in a one-on-one drill, putting on a few moves that had the 6-foot-9 big man off-balance and stumbling. The clip captured some viral attention, leading to plenty of jokes at Looney’s expense.
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Young Hooper Cooks Looney
The video, which was initially posted on TikTok but eventually found its way to Twitter and other platforms, showed Looney trying to guard a young player above the three-point line. After Looney was able to stay with him for a few moves, the ballhandler hit him with a crossover and attacked the basket, scoring a layup beyond the long reach of the Warriors starter. The video ended shortly afterward, with the campers cheering in approval of the big move.
There’s a good chance that the hooper who beat Looney has yet to enter high school. The registration for his camp showed that it was for boys and girls between the ages of 8 and 14.
They did Kevon Looney like this at HIS OWN CAMP 😳 (h/t forgivedev/TikTok)
Though the moment led to some mockery of Looney online, it didn’t seem to get him down too much. Looney still took to Instagram to share some pictures of the camp, including shots of him posing with the young players.
Looney Returning to the Bay
Looney had been having a good summer leading up to the viral moment at his basketball camp. Back in late June, Looney exercised his $5.2 million player option, returning to Golden State for his seventh season. As Drew Shiller of NBC Sports Bay Area noted, Looney appears to be headed back to the starting role he held by the end of last season with the injury to rookie center James Wiseman. Shiller noted that Wiseman will likely still be rehabbing when training camp opens in late September. The veteran Looney could have an even more important role as the season goes on, with the team looking to help develop their pair of lottery picks, Jonathan Kuminga and Moses Moody.
Kevon Looney reportedly will exercise his $5.2 million contract option to return to the Warriors next season
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Looney, who averaged 4.3 points and 4 rebounds in a career-high 19 minutes per game last season, also has the endorsement of his coach and teammates. As Shiller noted on Twitter, head coach Steve Kerr praised Looney back in January for his ability to facilitate for his teammates on offense.
“Looney’s just rock solid. He’s always making the right screen, the right pass, the right box out. He has a great feel for the game,” Kerr said. “Some see it and some don’t. It’s never gonna show up in the box score. He just seems to make the group whole when he’s out there.”
Steph Curry has also lauded Looney for his feel for the game on offense, especially when it comes to setting screens.
“There’s an art and a science to it. There’s a chemistry to it,” Curry said of the importance of setting a good screen. “You have to go through the reps to understand what it’s like. Loon has been there.”
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