When the Lakers open the season against the Warriors tonight, the oldest player on the roster will be in uniform: Kevon Looney is 30, in his 11th season, and off the injury report. He joins a frontcourt that leans on Walker Kessler, a center who played just 5 games last season.
The Glass Is the Resume
Last season Looney played 21 games at 14.6 minutes a night, averaging 2.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 1.6 assists. Count those rebounds against the minutes and his 17.1% rebound rate makes sense: he cleans up misses at a rate few reserves can match. The rest of his game is built around not costing his team. His usage was 9.6%, he turned it over 0.4 times a game, and his 14.8% assist rate shows a big man who moves the ball rather than holding it. He gets the extra possession and hands it to the stars.
The Numbers Against Him
The scoring is where his case falls apart. He shot 41.7% from the field, his true shooting was 45.8%, and he made 15.4% of his threes on 0.6 attempts a game. Defenses can leave him alone. His offensive rating was 105.3, well below the 117.0 the Lakers posted as a team last season. The bigger worry is the other end. His defensive rating of 115.7 and his -10.4 net mark offer no evidence that he fixes anything, and a Lakers defense that ranked 19th last season needs fixing. He averaged 0.5 blocks and 0.4 steals. He does not protect the rim. He holds his ground.
Insurance at $2.4M
The Lakers built this frontcourt around Kessler, who carries a $30.2M salary and averaged 10.8 rebounds in his 5 games last season. Sandro Mamukelashvili, at $13.0M, played 80 games last season, and Lakers Nation reported that JJ Redick wants him pushing the pace after he grabs a defensive rebound. Jarred Vanderbilt has also been cleared. Looney's $2.4M is small change on a $201.3M payroll that already sits above the $200.4M tax line, and that makes him the cheapest fallback on the roster if Kessler's health falters again. The verdict is plain: he has to be a 15-minute specialist who wins the boards, never forces a shot and gets back on defense. If his defense looks like last season's, those minutes go to Mamukelashvili.
Is Kevon Looney available for the Lakers' opener against the Warriors?
Yes. He is not on the injury report for the Oct. 21 opener against Golden State.
How much is Kevon Looney making this season?
Looney's contract pays him $2.4M for 2026-27. That is a small piece of a Lakers payroll that sits above the luxury tax line.
