NBA Rumors: Lakers-Irving pulse check, Steph’s stirring soapbox speech, and the best-kept center secret in the league

NBA Rumors: Everyday should be Kevon Looney appreciation day

Behind every great point guard is his screen-setter. And behind Steph Curry’s 6-foot-2 frame is the towering and constantly grinning Kevon Looney.

After Game 7’s victory against the Kings, Warriors head coach Steve Kerr called Looney one of the best centers of the league.

Looney doesn’t receive the same praise that Joel Embiid or Nikola Jokic get and the Warriors don’t pay him nearly enough, yet he just might be the most important player on Golden State — behind Curry, that is.

Looney’s career night was overshadowed by Curry’s (as is the norm), but the center finished with 20 or more rebounds for the third time this series. He became the third Warriors to achieve that feat, joining the rarified air of Wilt Chamberlain and Nate Thurmond.

He ate Kings All-Star center Domantas Sabonis alive on Sunday, grabbing 13 boards in the second half of the game; Sabonis had only three. In fact, over the course of this series, Looney recorded 29 more rebounds than Sabonis in 32 fewer minutes.

The Warriors wouldn’t be here without Curry, but they wouldn’t be here without Looney, either. Put some respect on that humble center’s name.