While combing through players who might resemble Kevon Looney, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr landed on former Lakers striker Kurt Rambis.
« They’re not exactly similar players, » said Kerr. « But in terms of people who were role players and played very important roles on championship teams – I thought that was a decent comparison. »
Like Rambis for the « Showtime » Lakers in the 1980s, Looney knows how to play along and get the most out of your All-Star teammates. For this reason, Kerr replaced James Wiseman on the starting grid with Looney on Monday.
After watching the Warriors start slowly in two losses due to poor defense and offensive execution, Kerr decided to change the starting line-up and open Looney with Stephen Curry, Kelly Oubre Jr., Andrew Wiggins and Draymond Green. In the win, the Warriors took the lead by 16 points and outnumbered the Timberwolves by 21 points when Looney was on the court.
For Looney, who only scored once in the double digits this season, his influence on the game is not necessarily reflected in the boxing rating. Of course, there’s one statistic that comes up when trying to measure the impact of Looney: plus-minus. And Looney tops all the Warriors who play constant minutes up 2.3, which means Golden State outperforms their opponent by an average of 2.3 points per game when Looney is on the ground.
« These positive pluses and minuses speak for his awareness on the ground and knowing where he needs to be, » said Kerr. « It uses his length defensively. He rarely fouls. Guarding the rim gives him a great opportunity to go vertically, be in the right position to go vertically, and be able to defend, without reaching. »
This is most evident in defense, where Looney is rarely out of position and always communicating with his teammates. He may not sweep away the opponent’s shots, but his teammates rely on him to shout screens and defend multiple positions smoothly.
On the offensive, Looney thrives as a screen setter for Curry. In his more than five seasons with the Warriors, he has managed to angle his screen, rotate his body and measure his role. Sometimes Looney pulls up old clips from Kevin Garnett and David West and studies the intricacies of their games.
« You can learn these little things and the basics from these big guys and just add them to the foundation of your game, » Looney said. « Everyone looks at the points they get, but they don’t look at the screens and the rebounds. It’s all about the little things. »
Since he is not of elite athleticism or size, Looney affects those Margins off. He studies feature film, understands scouting reports, and can precisely execute the Warriors scheme. Kerr often calls Looney a « basic player » and « a stone » – evidence of Looney’s consistent approach.
On the subject of matching items
Why Steve Kerr replaces James Wiseman on the grid with Kevon Looney
When Minnesota cut the Warriors’ lead to eight on Monday in the middle of the fourth quarter, Kerr brought Looney and Curry back into play. On her first possession, Looney found Curry for a 3-pointer, then on the next possession set up a screen to set up Curry’s free throws, which increased Golden State’s lead to double digits. Looney only scored two points in the game, killing 4-1, but dropped three screens leading to nine points for Curry and finished the game as a plus-21.
Looney will be back on the grid on Wednesday night, and for a while after that the Warriors will try to keep the playoff position firmly under control. Meanwhile, Wiseman, still learning the game at 19 but mentioned in his share of House of Highlights social media posts, will be watching Looney at the screen, defending and lifting his teammates – as Rambis does for Magic Johnson, James Worthy and Kareem did Abdul-Jabbar over the four-time Lakers champion.
« He’s on some great teams and he was a great role-player, » Looney said of Rambis. “I know he did his job. So that Steve can compare me to a guy like that, I’ll take that as a compliment. »
Here is a clip of Kevon Looney’s media availability yesterday. He talked about the pros and cons of screening for Steph Curry. pic.twitter.com/w7R9AmnEjY
Ref: https://www.mercurynews.com
