"Even with Steph’s 50": Mike Brown attributes Kings' loss to Kevon Looney's rebounding despite MVP-level showcase from Chef Curry

The Sacramento Kings ended their 16-year playoff drought last season. Head coach Mike Brown oversaw a resurgent season for the Kings, making them a favorite of NBA fans around the globe. However, the Golden State Warriors overcame Brown's Kings team in the first round of the playoffs.

When speaking to Sportskeeda's Mark Medina during an exclusive interview, Brown pinpointed an unlikely difference-maker for the Warriors. Where most fans would believe that Steph Curry's 50-point game-seven performance was the deciding factor, Brown believes Kevon Looney was the difference maker for Steve Kerr's team.

“A lot of people say that Steph’s 50-point performance was Game 7 was our downfall. But Steph is a great player. It’s going to be hard to stop Steph,” Brown told Sportskeeda's Medina. “I’ve been a part of many NBA championships with Steph knowing that everybody is gameplanning to stop him. He still goes and gets his. Where we lost that series is the rebounding department. Kevon Looney has a heck of a series. In that Game 7, if we could’ve controlled the boards, even with Steph’s 50, I thought we would’ve had a much better chance of winning the game.”

In game seven against the Sacramento Kings, Looney secured 21 rebounds along with 11 points and 4 assists. He has been an unsung hero for the Warriors, especially during playoffs. At 6-foot-9, Looney has been an explosive yet undersized rebounder for Golden State, averaging 9.3 boards per game this past season.

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Mike Brown is expecting Keegan Murray to have a big season for the Sacramento Kings

During his first season with the franchise, Mike Brown oversaw significant changes. One of the most prominent was the internal development of Keegan Murray.

During the same interview with Medina, Brown discussed how Murray has been working with De'Aaron Fox and developmental coach Luke Loucks throughout the summer. Moreover, Brown is expecting another big season from his young forward.

“The sky is the limit for that guy," Brown told Medina. "He has worked extremely hard, especially on his body. So he is a lot stronger. His level of focus is second to none. He wants to be a great player. Last year, he was predominately a catch-and-shoot 3-point shooter. You saw a little glimpse of it in the Sacramento summer league."

Mike Brown continued:

"He put the ball on the ground now and made a play for himself. He’s able to play in a little bit of pick-and-roll...We’ve seen it in practices. More importantly, he’s worked on it with [assistant coach] Dutch Gaitley during the summer. That’s been his workout guy.”

Murray can develop into an All-Star-level talent for the Kings. He averaged 12.2 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.2 assists in his rookie year, shooting 45.3% from the field and 41.1% from 3-point range.

Expectations are high after a strong debut season for both Mike Brown and Keegan Murray. It will be interesting to see how the player, coach, and the entire roster deal with the additional scouting focus teams will put into their matchups this season. The Kings will hope last year's playoff was just the start of something special.