In Defense of DeMarcus Cousins

As he heads into his fifth NBA season, former Kentucky Wildcat DeMarcus Cousins is at a career crossroads. For whatever reason, Cousins has been labeled as a malcontent, a hot head and as a player that’s only about his statistics. Let’s not overlook his stats. For his career, Cousins is averaging 18.9 points and 10.6 rebounds a game. DeMarcus averaged 24.1 points and 12.7 rebounds during the 2014-15 season, his second consecutive season with at least 20 and 10. Cousins’ numbers are just too impressive to overlook, yet with his Sacramento Kings not sniffing the playoffs since his arrival in 2010, some NBA experts are trying to do just that.

Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

Since his days in Lexington, DeMarcus Cousins has carried the hothead label. And unfairly so. It seems as if those reporters covering the Cats were almost looking for something to make Cousins an example of what not to do. His on the court demeanor is, without a doubt, demonstrative. He wears his passionate emotions on his sleeves and, at times, that has gotten him into some situations. During the Louisville basketball game in December 2009, he infamously lowered a forearm into Jared Swopshire’s chest during a fracas. I think that episode was enough to get him the “bad guy” label. In fact, Fox Sports’ Clay Travis went so far as to “100% guarantee” that DeMarcus would be arrested within 5 years. Five years passed and Cousins hasn’t had a whiff of off the court issues.

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That, is the dilemma of DeMarcus Cousins in a nutshell. People are so convinced he’s a bad guy that when he isn’t, they seem disappointed. The Sacramento Kings are, to put it mildly, a dumpster fire. Since Cousins’ arrival, there has been an ownership change, a potential franchise move and a revolving door of head coaches. It’s not a stable environment for any player, let alone the franchise player that Cousins has developed into. George Karl was hired by the Kings as head coach under the assumption that he would get along with the team’s star player. Shortly after the end of the season, Karl announced that he wanted to get rid of Cousins, a move that Kings owner Vivek Ranadive and GM Vlade Dviac have flatly refused.

Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

And despite all this turmoil, somehow DeMarcus Cousins has become the bad guy. His off-the-court issues have never materialized and his charitable work goes unnoticed and unreported. Yes, he gets a lot of technical fouls, but that’s due to his demonstrative behavior and, as any NBA fan will attest, reputation gets you a lot of calls in the NBA. With former Cats Rajon Rondo and Willie Cauley-Stein in Sac-Town, this could be Cousins’ best shot at the playoffs. Of course, his relationship with head coach Karl will need to be repaired and even then the Western Conference is only going to get deeper with the return of a healthy Kevin Durant in OKC and the Suns getting more talented as well.

I’m not saying DeMarcus is perfect. Obviously, he’s not. But this vilification narrative has to stop. He does a lot of good things on and off the court. Hopefully, things will become more stable in Sacramento and he’ll be able to show the NBA what the Big Blue Nation has known for a long time: DeMarcus Cousins is a special player.

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