Kevon Looney hits NBA free agency as Knicks and Celtics search for proven frontcourt depth and stability

Kevon Looney enters the market: Knicks and Celtics among the most logical options for the experienced NBA center

NEW ORLEANS – Kevon Looney could very soon find himself at the center of the market for backup centers in the NBA. After the New Orleans Pelicans, according to a report by Chris Haynes relayed by Hoops Rumors, decided not to activate the team option worth around eight million dollars for the 2026/27 season, the 30-year-old big man enters unrestricted free agency. Such an outcome does not mean that Looney has no value on the market, but rather that New Orleans wants greater financial flexibility ahead of the start of negotiations with players. In its official calendar, the NBA states that teams may begin negotiations with free agents from June 30 at 6 p.m. Eastern Time, while most contracts can be signed from July 6. Looney therefore enters a new phase of his career at a moment when several teams are looking for a reliable big man who does not need to have a major offensive role.

The Pelicans open up space, Looney looks for a new role

According to the available information, New Orleans’ decision concerns the team option in Looney’s contract, not a classic contract termination or player trade. That is an important distinction because, after the option expires, the veteran does not become a player with restricted rights, but an unrestricted free agent who can negotiate with all teams. Hoops Rumors states that the Pelicans’ move is not a major surprise given the cost of the option and the changing role Looney had after arriving in New Orleans. As of June 29, 2026, it has not been officially confirmed that any team has made a concrete offer, but reports around the league already link him with teams that need experience under the basket. In such an environment, Looney’s value depends less on his output in the last season and more on the profile of a player who for a long time brought stability in the winning system of the Golden State Warriors.

Basketball-Reference records that in the 2025/26 season Looney played 21 games for the Pelicans and averaged 2.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists. Those numbers by themselves do not create the picture of a player who will change the hierarchy of an offense, but they describe his real market category well: he is a rotation center, not a team carrier. In his career, according to the same statistical source, he has played more than 600 regular-season games, averaging 4.9 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.6 assists. NBA.com states in his biography that he was selected as the 30th pick in the first round of the 2015 draft and that he won three championship titles with the Warriors, in 2017, 2018 and 2022. It is precisely that combination of long tenure, championship experience and acceptance of a limited role that makes him interesting to teams that are not looking for a star, but a reliable part of the second unit.

Why New York is mentioned as a natural destination

The New York Knicks appear as one of the most logical options if they lose Mitchell Robinson. The Stein Line, according to Hoops Rumors’ relay, links Looney with the Knicks precisely in the context of Robinson’s possible departure, while the New York Post reported that Robinson’s return to New York is considered uncertain because of financial limitations and the second-tax-apron threshold. Robinson is a long-time member of the Knicks and one of the best rebounders among rotation centers, but his new contract could be too high for a team trying to maintain flexibility. If such a scenario materializes, New York would have to find a cheaper and disciplined solution behind Karl-Anthony Towns. In that construction, Looney presents himself as a veteran who can play limited minutes, hold the defensive structure and help control the rebounding.

An additional connection is coach Mike Brown. In an official announcement on July 7, 2025, the New York Knicks confirmed that Brown had been appointed head coach, while the official biography of the NBA Coaches Association states that from 2016 to 2022 he was an assistant to Steve Kerr in Golden State. During that period, he worked in the same environment in which Looney grew from a late first-round pick into a reliable member of a championship rotation. Brown therefore knows his habits, strengths and limitations well, which in free agency is often just as important as the statistical profile. A team with the ambition to remain competitive usually does not want to spend the early weeks of the season learning the basic details of defensive rules, and Looney is a player to whom a smaller but clear role can quickly be explained.

For the Knicks, the question of price is decisive. The New York Post states that the club wants to avoid crossing the second tax apron, which would limit additional tools for roster construction. Within such a framework, Robinson’s eventual departure would not automatically open space for a major reinforcement, but would force the front office to look for a player who can produce some of the same things at a lower price. Looney is not identical to Robinson: he is not the same type of vertical threat at the rim and does not bring the same level of shot-blocking presence. Still, he offers rebounding, screen-setting, communication on defense and experience playing in high-pressure games, and those are elements that coaches often value more than what is visible in basic statistics.

The Celtics are looking for a safer foundation under the basket

The Boston Celtics are also mentioned among the potentially interested teams. According to a report from The Stein Line relayed by Hoops Rumors, Boston expects a market for additional depth in the paint, and Looney is one of the names on the list of possible solutions. The same report states that the Celtics are also considering other options, including a possible return of Robert Williams III, so Looney for now does not look like the only or necessarily first choice. NBC Sports Boston, in its offseason analysis, assessed that free agency does not offer many ideal solutions for upgrading the Celtics’ front line and that the trade market could also be an important path. This helps explain why teams like Boston are interested in veterans whose value is clear, but who may be financially more accessible.

For the Celtics, Looney would have a different function than for the Knicks. Boston, according to available roster analyses, is not necessarily looking for a big man who will change the team’s identity, but a stable option who can survive certain defensive assignments, close out rebounds and allow the main players not to be worn down in every physical regular-season game. Looney has often been useful throughout his career precisely in that space between starting center and deep bench. His minutes can be limited, but in a well-set system such a player can allow the coach not to change defensive rules every time the primary center leaves the game. That is especially important for teams that expect playoff series against physically strong opponents.

Looney’s potential appeal for Boston is also connected with reliability in simple tasks. He is not a shooter who spaces the floor and does not carry the offense out of the post, but throughout his career he has long brought useful possessions through offensive rebounding, timely screens and passes out of the short roll after the pick-and-roll. Such details are not always highly valued at the start of the free-agent market, when most attention is devoted to stars and players with big contracts. However, teams aiming for a deep playoff run often look precisely for players who will not require a large number of touches, but will not disrupt the structure of play either. If his price remains in the range for backup centers, Looney could be a practical option for the Celtics, although not the only one.

Championship experience as the main argument

Looney’s career in Golden State remains a key part of his reputation. NBA.com lists three championship titles with the Warriors, while Mike Brown’s biography at the NBA Coaches Association confirms that Brown was in the same period part of the coaching staff that participated in winning the titles in 2017, 2018 and 2022. Looney was not a star on those teams, but he gradually became a player to whom the Warriors entrusted minutes in series in which rebounding, positioning and composure were more important than an individual offensive arsenal. That is a special form of value on the market because teams often know that low-usage big men are harder to evaluate solely through points averages. His market story therefore is not based on the idea of returning to the foreground, but on the belief that he can fill a clear gap on a team that already has its leaders.

Such a profile also has limitations. Looney enters free agency after a season in which he did not have major minutes, and teams will surely check how much he can physically withstand the rhythm of 82 games and a potential playoff run. The modern NBA increasingly asks centers to defend wide space, finish above the rim or threaten with a three-point shot, while Looney mostly brings more traditional skills. That is precisely why his next destination must be chosen carefully. On a team that expects too large an offensive role from him, he could look limited, but in a system that seeks toughness, rebounding and simple decisions, he can remain very usable.

For a player of his profile, the relationship between status and expectations is also important. Looney has already passed the phase of his career in which he has to prove himself as a young talent, and he has entered an age in which professionalism, preparation and readiness for changing minutes are expected of him. That makes him suitable for teams that have developed hierarchies and do not want to bring in a backup center who will demand offensive possessions. At the same time, free agency often punishes players without a shooting threat if the market dries up quickly or if teams decide they can find a younger and cheaper alternative. Looney’s name therefore carries weight, but the final offer will depend on how much teams value experience in relation to athletic and shooting projection.

The market will decide how much a reliable veteran is worth

Until negotiations begin on June 30, Looney’s situation remains open. He could be especially interesting to the Knicks if Robinson leaves, because they would then need a center who can immediately enter the rotation and does not require a change in offensive structure. He could be interesting to the Celtics as part of a broader search for a more stable front line, especially if other options prove too expensive or difficult to execute through trades. The Pelicans, on the other hand, by their decision on the option clearly showed that they do not want to continue under the same financial terms, but that does not close the door for Looney to quickly find a new role in the league. In NBA free agency, precisely such players often wait for the more expensive contracts to be resolved first, and then become key for filling out the rosters of playoff candidates.

At the moment there is no official confirmation that Looney is close to an agreement with the Knicks, Celtics or any other team. The safest thing to say is that he enters the market as a proven veteran with clear strengths and equally clear limitations. His value will not be measured by headlines or spectacular numbers, but by his ability to reduce mistakes in small minutes, close out rebounds and maintain defensive order. If Robinson’s departure from New York is indeed confirmed, the Knicks could be among the first teams that will have to react. If Boston decides that it needs a safer reserve under the basket, the Celtics have enough reasons at least to consider a player who has already proven that he can be part of a championship locker room.

Sources:
- Hoops Rumors – report on the New Orleans Pelicans’ decision not to activate Looney’s team option and on the Knicks’ interest (link)
- Hoops Rumors – overview of rumors around the Boston Celtics, including mentions of Kevon Looney and Robert Williams III. (link)
- NBA.com – official 2026 free agency calendar and key dates for negotiations and contract signings (link)
- NBA.com – official biography of Kevon Looney with data on the draft and championship titles with the Golden State Warriors (link)
- Basketball-Reference – statistical overview of Looney’s 2025/26 season and career (link)
- New York Knicks / NBA.com – official announcement on the appointment of Mike Brown as head coach of the New York Knicks (link)
- NBA Coaches Association – biography of Mike Brown and data on his work with the Golden State Warriors (link)
- New York Post – report on Mitchell Robinson’s uncertain status and the Knicks’ financial limitations (link)
- NBC Sports Boston – analysis of the Boston Celtics’ front-line needs and the limitations of the free-agent market (link)