Kevon Looney reveals that he left the Warriors after growing frustrated with inconsistent playing time and a lack of trust from the coaching staff, especially during the 2025 NBA Playoffs.
Kevon Looney will suit up for a new team next season, signing with the New Orleans Pelicans as a free agent.
Points this season
Golden State Warriors
NBA
After spending his entire 10-year NBA career with the Golden State Warriors, the 29-year-old brings rebounding, defense, leadership, and experience to New Orleans — and becomes the oldest player on the Pelicans roster.
Looney was drafted 30th overall by Golden State in 2015 out of UCLA and went on to win three championships with the team. He appeared in 599 games with the Warriors, forming a long-standing core alongside Stephen Curry and Draymond Green.
The decision to leave the Bay Area stemmed largely from a decline in trust and playing time under head coach Steve Kerr, the big man revealed.
"These last few years, everything's been changing, everything's been kind of up and down. They are telling me late. My minutes are always up and down," Looney said on the Warriors Plus Minus podcast. "I was like, 'What's really going to happen?' I don't know how they view me, or how much they're going to offer. It can vary with the Warriors."
Credit AP Photo/Loren Elliott - Scanpix
Looney pointed to the 2025 playoff series against the Houston Rockets as the final breaking point.
"It was not one moment. Like, even this year, probably in the playoffs. We're going against Steven Adams. This is what I do. They're not giving me the chance to really let me do what I do," he said. "It's like, alright, y'all don't trust me. I thought y'all would trust me."
Looney played just 10.0 minutes per game in 12 playoff appearances this year.
During the regular season, he saw action in 76 games, averaging 4.5 points, 6.1 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in 15.0 minutes per contest — mostly coming off the bench.
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