Kevon Looney will never be remembered as a star in Golden State, because he wasn't one. But he was a crucial part of the Warriors dynasty, and will be loved in The Bay area forever. After a decade with the Warriors, Looney signed a free agent deal with the New Orleans Pelicans last summer — a two-year deal with a club option in the second season.
After appearing in just 21 games this season, and with the Pelicans having two young centers in Derik Queen and Yves Missi on the roster, there doesn't seem to be much reason for the Pelicans to pick up that club option, which would make Looney an unrestricted free agent.
It feels like Looney has been around forever, but he's only 30 years old. With such a proven track record of winning at a high level, he's almost certain to land another job if the Pelicans do decide to embrace the youth movement in their frontcourt.
Kevon Looney is likely to join his third team this summer
Looney and New Orleans was always a bit of a strange pairing. He's an awesome center if there are some stars on the roster flanking him, but that wasn't the case in New Orleans. He started the season injured, then was used sparingly, then pretty much absent from the rotation for all of the second half of the season. All of it was weird.
For any Warriors fans wondering about a potential reunion, I wouldn't get your hopes up... But probably wouldn't fully count it out, either. Kristaps Porzingis is an unrestricted free agent and Al Horford has a player option, so there's a chance the Warriors need serious help at the center position.
Maybe Looney could be considered as a "break in case of emergency" option, but an end-of-bench center definitely won't be at the top of the Warriors' list of priorities when free agency opens up. It would be an easy way to win some goodwill from the fans, though, and that counts for something, I suppose.
Regardless, it's somewhat surprising to see how quickly Looney went from an every day rotation player in Golden State to a non-factor on a tanking team.