© Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
The Houston Rockets firmly enjoy trying to get under the Warriors’ skin. Houston’s most recent attempt at that is their pursuit of restricted free agent Kevon Looney. There is no question the Rockets are genuinely interested in Looney, as many teams in the NBA likely are, after he made abundantly clear how valuable he was in the 2019 NBA playoffs, which featured him playing through a fractured collarbone while essentially only lifting one arm.
However, the Rockets’ pursuit of Looney does have the added benefit of potentially taking away a “foundational piece” (as Steve Kerr called Looney) of Golden State’s scheme. Even if Looney stays with the Warriors, the Rockets could potentially aim to up the bidding on him. According to The New York Times’ Marc Stein, the Rockets have set up a “recruitment session” with Looney on Sunday, when the free agency period officially begins at 6 p.m. ET.
The Rockets have a free-agent recruitment session arranged for Sunday with Warriors center Kevon Looney, league sources say
— Marc Stein (@TheSteinLine) June 29, 2019
The Rockets are projected to be over the salary cap, and have reportedly been shopping both guard Eric Gordon and center Clint Capela in order to pursue guard Jimmy Butler, in a scenario that would likely involve a sign-and-trade. If the Rockets clear that space, but strike out on Butler, or acquire Butler and keep their salaries under $123,381,000, or strike out on Butler without clearing that space, but keep their salaries under $123,381,000, they would be able to open up a non-taxpaying mid-level exception at $9.2 million, which can be used on deals for up to four years.
With Kevon Looney’s full Bird rights, the Warriors will have the opportunity to exceed the cap up to a maximum contract to retain Looney. The issues with this come into play if the Warriors re-sign Kevin Durant and, as expected, Klay Thompson. The Rockets could potentially offer a deal that would increase the Warriors’ projected massive tax burden if both players re-sign, and make the Warriors reconsider whether Looney is worth bringing back, depending on the cost.
Of course, this is the case for any team with cap room, or a full non-taxpaying mid-level exception. If Durant leaves, however, the Rockets, and any other team interested will lose much of their leverage in pursuing Looney.