Kevon Looney re-signs for three years

Everyone can breathe a sigh of relief and crack a smile, because the Golden State Warriors have finally re-signed center Kevon Looney.

Looney is reportedly signing a three-year deal with $25.5 million, though the third year of the deal is only partially guaranteed, meaning the Warriors can move on if Looney falls off, gets injured, or becomes irrelevant with James Wiseman’s development.

Looney was brilliant last year, in his seventh NBA season since the Warriors selected him with the 30th pick in the 2015 NBA Draft. He was one of just five NBA players (joining Deni Avdija, Dwight Powell, Saddiq Bey, and Mikal Bridges) to play all 82 games this year, and followed it up by playing all 22 of the Dubs postseason games as well.

He averaged 6.0 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 2.0 assists per game, while playing 21.1 minutes a night, shooting 57.1% from the field, and having a 58.6% true-shooting percentage.

But his biggest contribution came on the defensive end, where he held his own against larger, star centers, and excelled when switched onto smaller, perimeter-oriented players. With Wiseman’s injury, Looney became one of the most important players on the team, and was reliable from opening night until the buzzer rang after Game 6 of the NBA Finals.

It’s definitely a team-friendly deal, as most people expected Looney to get a bigger payday than that.

Returning Looney was crucial after the Warriors lost their other three free agents who played big minutes last year: Gary Payton II, who signed a three-year deal with the Portland Trail Blazers; Otto Porter Jr., who signed a two-year deal with the Toronto Raptors; and Nemanja Bjelica, who is returning to Europe.