Kevon Looney Injury: Updates on Warriors Forward's Recovery from Hip Surgery

Golden State Warriors rookie forward Kevon Looney's rough rookie season has come to an end, and his development on the court is on hold for the moment.

Continue for updates.

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Looney Has Surgery on Left Hip

Friday, April 22

The Warriors announced Looney underwent successful left hip surgery Friday to repair a torn labrum (h/t Ethan Strauss of ESPN.com).

The team expects Looney, a first-round pick out of UCLA in 2015, to miss four to six months. He also had surgery in August to repair a torn labrum in his right hip and played in only five games for the Warriors this year.

Looney was the last pick of the first round after averaging 11.6 points per game as a freshman for the Bruins.

The 20-year-old Milwaukee native also played 12 games for the NBA Development League's Santa Cruz Warriors, averaging 9.8 points and 7.4 rebounds in 19.3 minutes per game.

Looney made his debut for the defending NBA champions Jan. 27 against the Dallas Mavericks, scoring two points in six minutes of action. He appeared in four contests in a six-game stretch from Feb. 10 through Feb. 25 but did not participate in another game for the rest of the year. He had a career-high eight rebounds Feb. 19 against the Portland Trail Blazers.

The four- to six-month timeline means the 6'9" forward will likely have to sit out of the NBA Summer League this year.

In an interview with Adam Figman of Slam Magazine on April 11, Looney detailed what the process was like while recovering from surgery on his right hip:

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Going through the injury process was frustrating because the guys made me feel part of the team, but I really didn’t feel comfortable with the guys because they’re a little older than me and they’ve been playing together, and I couldn’t really play. I didn’t really feel confident talking about basketball with them because they’re champions—they know a lot about basketball. I didn’t really feel as comfortable because I wasn’t playing. But the guys made me feel good and accepted me, so it made it kinda easy. But it was frustrating, to go there and watch. It was really frustrating.

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While it may have been frustrating, the Warriors have been supportive of their rookie forward. Reigning MVP Steph Curry was so enthusiastic the night Looney made his first basket that he took to Instagram:

For Looney to miss the summer league is a tough break. He showed promise during his stint in the D-League, and despite not cracking the rotation for Golden State, he spent the season gaining valuable experience with the best team in the NBA.

If he can get back to basketball activities by August or September, that would be a good sign for the developing young forward.

Stats courtesy of Basketball-Reference.com.

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