Kevon Looney, a key member of the Golden State Warriors‘ last three championship runs, could land on the New York Knicks this offseason if they cut him loose, according to The Athletic’s Fred Katz.
“Looney will be an option only if one of the Knicks’ most dreaded free-agent scenarios plays out. If [Isaiah] Hartenstein walks for a larger offer, especially considering New York is capped at how much it can pay the center, then the team needs a replacement. Looney could fill the void.
He fits the Knicks’ vibe check. Looney is a rebounder first, one of the world’s most ferocious on the glass. He finished 10th in the NBA in offensive rebound rate this past season. He’s a physical presence down low and would arrive with championship experience, a member of three of the Warriors’ titles,” Katz wrote on June 11.
The Knicks could use their midlevel exception to sign Looney if he hits the open market and offers him the playing time he had lost this season with the Warriors.
Looney’s future in the Bay Area is uncertain after he lost his regular rotation spot to rookie Trayce Jackson-Davis.
His streak of consecutive games played ended at 290 during a March 8 loss to the Chicago Bulls this season. He received a DNP (Did Not Play) in eight of the Warriors’ final 21 games.
Looney averaged 4.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists in a four-year low of 16.1 minutes per game this season.
Kevon Looney Likely to Get Cut
Only $3 million of Looney’s $8 million salary for next season is guaranteed. Getting bumped off the regular rotation might have signaled the end of his run with the Warriors.
“I think the likeliest situation is that he’s cut, and he makes $3 million from them, and he’s off looking for another spot,” The Athletic’s Tim Kawakami said on the “Warriors Plus Minus” podcast on June 6.
The Warriors have explored trading for a new center ahead of last February trade deadline, according to The Athletic’s Anthony Slater, which coincided with Looney’s playing time shrinking when Draymond Green returned from his second suspension.
“The Warriors have explored the center market. Could Wendell Carter Jr. be obtained from the Orlando Magic? Atlanta’s Clint Capela is reportedly available. Is Brooklyn’s Nic Claxton worth the price it’d take to get him and whatever contract he’d command in free agency this summer?” Slater wrote on January 30.
‘The Ball Isn’t in My Court’
With his future murky, Looney is in a wait-and-see mode, still hoping to remain with the team that drafted him but preparing himself for the inevitable.
“The ball isn’t in my court,” Looney said “Draymond Green Show” on June 9. “I don’t have full control over my destiny, so I kind of have to play the waiting game, control what I can control. I’ve been here my whole career. I don’t know nothing else. You always want to finish what you started and be somewhere for your whole career, but I’ve been in this business long enough to know that’s not realistic. I’m preparing myself for whatever. My family’s out here, the Bay’s been great to me. They treat me like family, I grew up here.
“I haven’t really thought about it too far. I’m trying to see what they’re going to do first before I push the envelope and see what I want to do.”
