Expectations for Kevon Looney?

[watch1958]

Please please let him take some open threes! I think he has as much right to shoot that shot as Draymond.

I think the only person keeping him from shooting was Loon.

I'm not really worried about getting 3s, as long as he is aggressive about taking open jumpers.

Last year he shot .515 from 16ft to 3 range. That is equal to shooting 34% on 3s. So just take those shots young fella.

[likashing]

The last couple of summers he trained with Harden and CP3 etc in UCLA. Not sure about this summer, but I read about him practising and actually hitting 3s during those 1-2 summers.

So Looney is definitely capable of hitting corner 3s. Whether he will this season during real games (or the number of shots), will depend on how fast he can rush back defensively because the corner is the farthest spot to get back defensively.

I can foresee him getting most of his 3-pt opportunities when Draymond is on the court, because Draymond usually plays at top of the 3 point line, so he can get back defensively faster when Looney is at the corner.

When Draymond is not there, I hope Looney stays away from the corner more and be more ready to get back defensively, otherwise it will be a fast-break party for the opponents.

In terms of minutes, I still have doubt about Looney's durability and I hope it is closer to 20/25 than 30+. I have observed that he puts his hand behind his hips/wasit standing straight when he is tired, sort of like a pregnant lady. It caught my eyes because it is more common for players to put both hands on both knees and sort of in a slight crouching position when tired. With his history I personally don't think he can be a 30-min 82-game player, especially when his role is an undersized center.

[Samurai]

The last couple of summers he trained with Harden and CP3 etc in UCLA. Not sure about this summer, but I read about him practising and actually hitting 3s during those 1-2 summers.

So Looney is definitely capable of hitting corner 3s. Whether he will this season during real games (or the number of shots), will depend on how fast he can rush back defensively because the corner is the farthest spot to get back defensively.

I can foresee him getting most of his 3-pt opportunities when Draymond is on the court, because Draymond usually plays at top of the 3 point line, so he can get back defensively faster when Looney is at the corner.

When Draymond is not there, I hope Looney stays away from the corner more and be more ready to get back defensively, otherwise it will be a fast-break party for the opponents.

In terms of minutes, I still have doubt about Looney's durability and I hope it is closer to 20/25 than 30+. I have observed that he puts his hand behind his hips/wasit standing straight when he is tired, sort of like a pregnant lady. It caught my eyes because it is more common for players to put both hands on both knees and sort of in a slight crouching position when tired. With his history I personally don't think he can be a 30-min 82-game player, especially when his role is an undersized center.

Agree with your points above. When anyone, not just a big although it is more pronounced with a center, takes a corner 3, everyone else has to be prepared to hustle back on D to avoid the other team from gaining a numbers advantage.

In terms of minutes, WCS averaged 27 minutes/game last season and 28 the year before. At 26, he should have no problem playing 30+ minutes. Looney was most effective last season as a spark off the bench, especially with his ability to crash the offensive glass; a "spark" would seem to lose their effectiveness if they are playing 30+ minutes.

[Scoots1994]

Looney has range, he doesn't have to be limited to corner 3s.

[Mylie10]

Looney has range, he doesn't have to be limited to corner 3s.

If he takes the open looks from up high, he can get back on defense easier. I'm cool with that.

[floppymoose]

I don't understand the Looney is spark thing. He's a starter. GS was way better last year when he was on the court. They were better on offense. They were better on defense. They were better rebounding. He's not a guy with big weaknesses that you protect by playing short minutes against certain matchups. He's the 4th best player on the whole team.

He's going to play as many minutes as he can handle.

[GQ Hot Dog]

I don't understand the Looney is spark thing. He's a starter. GS was way better last year when he was on the court. They were better on offense. They were better on defense. They were better rebounding. He's not a guy with big weaknesses that you protect by playing short minutes against certain matchups. He's the 4th best player on the whole team.

He's going to play as many minutes as he can handle.

Yet he's getting paid like a distant 5th best. Best bargain in basketball?

I still see WCS starting. I think that was sold to him and is why he signed with us. WCS is better built to deal with starting centers than Looney. But I could see Looney finishing plenty of games over WCS.

[killmongrel]

I don't understand the Looney is spark thing. He's a starter. GS was way better last year when he was on the court. They were better on offense. They were better on defense. They were better rebounding. He's not a guy with big weaknesses that you protect by playing short minutes against certain matchups. He's the 4th best player on the whole team.

He's going to play as many minutes as he can handle.

I don't understand why some people want Looney to start so badly. It's better to have him come off the bench after WCS has taken cared of absorbing minutes playing with the bigger centers in the league. Looney will also be closing games. It's just a better strategy.

[Samurai]

I don't understand the Looney is spark thing. He's a starter. GS was way better last year when he was on the court. They were better on offense. They were better on defense. They were better rebounding. He's not a guy with big weaknesses that you protect by playing short minutes against certain matchups. He's the 4th best player on the whole team.

He's going to play as many minutes as he can handle.

A starter is the one who starts the game. Not necessarily the one who plays the most minutes or plays in crunch time. Remember that Damian Jones was the "starter" in game 3 of the Blazers series; he played 3 terrible minutes and sat on the bench the rest of the way. Last season, Looney only started in 24 of his 80 games, and only started 1 game in the playoffs. In various interviews, Kerr explained this decision by saying that Looney provided a spark to the team, and we saw early in the playoffs that the team frequently fell behind at the beginning of the game but typically caught up later (when Looney would enter). Thus Looney could be viewed as a "spark" that ignited the team to go on a run to give them the lead. But Kerr also pointed out that the team's overall depth last season was not as deep as it had been in previous years; having Looney as a non-starter strengthened the bench unit.

So you already answered your own question on why Kerr considered him "a spark thing" - he improved/ignited the team on offense and defense as well as on the offensive glass. And Kerr likes having that spark off the bench when the team needs a kick in the pants and I agree with you that he will probably get as many minutes as Kerr feels he can handle. But I don't expect Looney to be the starter; I think WCS will be the starter. As far as who gets more total minutes, I suspect that will be based on performance and match-ups.

[floppymoose]

No, I answered my own question on why he's a starter. Although I'm not really hung up on who starts. The real point is he should get the majority of the C minutes. 30+ a game.

[GQ Hot Dog]

No, I answered my own question on why he's a starter. Although I'm not really hung up on who starts. The real point is he should get the majority of the C minutes. 30+ a game.

But seriously, which of our "big 4" is he better than IYO?

[Samurai]

No, I answered my own question on why he's a starter. Although I'm not really hung up on who starts. The real point is he should get the majority of the C minutes. 30+ a game.

No, you answered as to who you think should get the most minutes and/or crunch time minutes, not who will be starting.

As to whether or not Looney gets more total minutes than WCS, I think we need to see how WCS performs, particularly on defense. The big advantage Looney had over Cousins and Bogut is that Loon was more dependable defending the PnR on the perimeter. Since this is also one of WCS' strengths, it becomes a more interesting battle. WCS is also a 7-footer, so there could be match-up factors as well. Looney is a better offensive rebounder while WCS has been a better defensive rebounder. WCS has the reputation of being an under-performer in terms of rim protection. And WCS typically scores all his points in the paint; if Looney can actually stretch the defense out to the 3-point line this season, then that could give him the biggest advantage in terms of playing time.

[floppymoose]

No, I answered my own question on why he's a starter. Although I'm not really hung up on who starts. The real point is he should get the majority of the C minutes. 30+ a game.

But seriously, which of our "big 4" is he better than IYO?

Russell. Why are people even saying "big 4"? Russell hasn't proven a lot yet.

[floppymoose]

Willie Cauley-Stein is not close to Looney in impact. You are going to be disappointed if you expect WCS to be nearly as good.

[killmongrel]

Willie Cauley-Stein is not close to Looney in impact. You are going to be disappointed if you expect WCS to be nearly as good.

I just want WCS to be better than Jones, Bell, 40 year old Bogut, and gimpy Cousins.

[floppymoose]

^ Yeah, me too.

[Scoots1994]

Willie Cauley-Stein is not close to Looney in impact. You are going to be disappointed if you expect WCS to be nearly as good.

I just want WCS to be better than Jones, Bell, 40 year old Bogut, and gimpy Cousins.

He better be. I really liked WCS in college, so I'm hopeful that the Warriors activate that guy.

[Scoots1994]

No, I answered my own question on why he's a starter. Although I'm not really hung up on who starts. The real point is he should get the majority of the C minutes. 30+ a game.

But seriously, which of our "big 4" is he better than IYO?

Russell. Why are people even saying "big 4"? Russell hasn't proven a lot yet.

How many players on the team have been named all-stars?

[GQ Hot Dog]

But seriously, which of our "big 4" is he better than IYO?

Russell. Why are people even saying "big 4"? Russell hasn't proven a lot yet.

How many players on the team have been named all-stars?

I got this, it's 4. A "big 4" one might say.

Where do folks put D'lo in the WC guard hierarchy? I have him in tier 3.

Tier 1: Curry, Harden, Lillard, Westbrook
Tier 2: Booker, Conley, Holiday, CP3
Tier 3: Murray, Russell, Mitchell, McCollum

[floppymoose]

But seriously, which of our "big 4" is he better than IYO?

Russell. Why are people even saying "big 4"? Russell hasn't proven a lot yet.

How many players on the team have been named all-stars?

I don't care about names, I care about results.