The Lakers have finished their free-agent business, and the final piece is a familiar one: Kevon Looney.
Los Angeles announced the move Monday with a simple message on X/Twitter: "Welcome to the squad, Kevon (Looney)," coming six days after ESPN’s Shams Charania first reported the signing. With that, the Lakers have officially landed the former Golden State Warriors big man, a three-time NBA champion whose career earnings sit at $50 million.
Looney didn’t exactly lack for options. The Knicks and Warriors both showed real interest before he chose Los Angeles.
On June 28, the Stein Line’s Marc Stein and Jake Fischer reported that New York had Looney on its radar as a backup plan if Mitchell Robinson left. Robinson did leave, eventually signing a multi-year deal with the Boston Celtics.
"If Robinson does, in fact, depart New York amid the Knicks' well-chronicled financial constraints as the dreaded second apron closes in, sources say that the newly crowned champions are expected to try to bring on a veteran center with plenty of playoff experience: Former Warriors big man Kevon Looney,” Stein and Fischer wrote.
A few days later, the Warriors reunion talk picked up. NBA insider Scoop B. Robinson reported on July 2 that a return to Golden State was on the table.
“Following his decorated tenure with the Warriors, Looney took his veteran leadership to the New Orleans Pelicans,” Robinson wrote on July 2. “Now, a return to the franchise where he spent a decade and won three rings is firmly on the table for both sides-once the ultimate prize of free agency is decided.”
“Until LeBron (James) makes his final decision, the rest of the NBA universe-including the anticipated reunion between Kevon Looney and the Golden State Warriors-remains completely on pause.”
In the end, both of those paths closed. New York added Andre Drummond as Karl-Anthony Towns’ backup, while Golden State brought in Charles Bassey to help in the frontcourt alongside Kristaps Porzingis and Al Horford.
For the Lakers, the appeal is pretty clear. Looney is the kind of steady, physical big who does the dirty work, rebounds at a high level, and has spent years in winning situations. He’s been a consistent 10+ rebounds-per-40-minutes player, and that’s the sort of production that travels.
What he isn’t is a lob-catching flyer who’s going to suddenly change his game in the pick-and-roll. That’s not his lane, and the Lakers shouldn’t expect it to be.
But if Looney stays true to what he’s always been, Los Angeles should get a useful backup who can make a real impact without needing the ball to do it.
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