As the Kings enter a new era with what fans hope will finally be a competent ownership group, the franchise appears to want to enter next season with a completely clean slate.
Sacramento will look to bring in a new general manager and a new head coach, who will together need to decide what the best way is to go about building the team from essentially the ground up.
A big decision on the horizon is what to do with DeMarcus Cousins — a player whose talent borders on that of an All-Star, yet whose attitude and on-court demeanor has prevented him from achieving the level of success that most envision him capable of when watching him play.
If Sacramento does decide that it’s best to part ways with Cousins, there won’t be a shortage of teams interested in dealing for his services.
From Chad Ford of ESPN.com (via HoopsHype):
Sources say the Cavs have already begun to explore what they can get with the No. 1 pick. If they can get a young big or small forward in return, Gilbert will be pushing for them to trade the pick. Who can they get? The pickings will be slim. Teams aren’t dying to get the No. 1 pick. But one name that you shouldn’t totally rule out is the Sacramento Kings’ DeMarcus Cousins.
The Cavs won’t be the only team calling the Kings once they get a new GM in place. Sources say that the Charlotte Bobcats and Dallas Mavericks will also have interest in Cousins if Sacramento’s new management decides to cut ties with Cousins.
Cousins would appear to need to be in an environment where his antics won’t be tolerated, and only a team with a veteran head coach who commands the respect of his players will be able to get the most out of the talent that Cousins brings.
That’s why young rebuilding squads like the Cavaliers or the Bobcats don’t really make any sense. Cousins would be in the same situation there that he’s in in Sacramento, as one of the best players on a losing team that’s trying to establish a direction for itself. We’ve already seen that Cousins doesn’t do well in that type of a situation.
The Mavericks are more interesting, considering the more steady coach in place in Rick Carlisle, as well as Dirk Nowitzki who is clearly in the team’s leadership position. Add another couple of veterans to that roster, and all of a sudden Cousins will be forced to fall in line with a more mature group that will have no tolerance for the nonsense he’s brought to the game during his first three seasons in the league.
Cousins averaged 17.1 points, 9.9 rebounds, and 2.3 assists in 30.5 minutes per game this season. He also led the league with 17 technical fouls.
