The Golden State Warriors will start Kevon Looney on Monday against the Atlanta Hawks.

Looney is returning to the Warriors' lineup after missing 20 games. He will play in short bursts since his conditioning is probably poor.

The Warriors are 4-17 on the season and have the worst record in the NBA.

Looney averaged 6.3 points, 5.2 rebounds and 1.5 assists for the Warriors last season while shooting 62.5 percent from the field and 61.9 percent from the free-throw line.

In the 2019 playoffs, Looney put up 7.1 points and 4.5 rebounds. He earned a lot of respect throughout the league after playing in the 2019 NBA Finals on a fractured collarbone which he suffered in Game 2 against the Toronto Raptors.

It appears this season in Golden State is going to be about developing Eric Paschall, Jordan Poole and Ky Bowman, and owner Joe Lacob and general manager Bob Myers trust head coach Steve Kerr for that role.

Golden State, after going to the NBA Finals five straight seasons, is not elite anymore. Stephen Curry is out with a broken hand and Klay Thompson is still rehabbing his ACL tear. Kevin Durant, of course, is gone after signing with the Brooklyn Nets in the past offseason.

The Warriors should return to glory next season once the injured stars are back, and there’s nobody better than Kerr to be at the helm when that happens.