And now all the rumbling begins.
Dissension. Strife in the locker room. The coach throwing players under the bus. Players throwing other players under the bus.
It's getting ugly.
Unfortunately, it ain't gonna get better. And there's a huge reason for that.
His name is DeMarcus Cousins.
Yes, the incredibly talented center is putting up All-Star numbers. He's become a dominant force in the NBA.
But he is not a leader. And he's an intense, still immature, force of nature who doesn't suffer fools. Or anyone else, for that matter, not named DeMarcus. Sometimes it's hard to grow up, hard to learn how to be diplomatic and understand how people view you. It took me 40 years.
With Cousins, you get the feeling his teammates are not that happy to suit up at his side.
On a veteran team, Cousins might be fine. On a young team, he's a problem.
The Kings' brass, for some reason, think they are just a couple of players away from competing for a playoff spot. Why else bring in Rudy Gay and his ridiculously large contract? Or take a flyer on Derrick Williams, who will be owed $6 million next season?
The Kings are miles away from being a good team. Mostly, because they are a team of players with a miserable attitude about each other. And that won't change until Cousins undergoes some serious soul searching or is dealt. If it was my team, I'd vote the latter.
Yes, I know, you can't trade a talent of that magnitude. He's supposedly "untouchable." He's gonna be a force and a beast and a superstar.
Maybe so. But I doubt it happens here. There's a better chance he gets suspended for giving a teammate an atomic wedgie.
1 comment:
Demarcus is a highly talented player but that does not make him a leader. I think he would be phenomenal on a team that had a true leader - one who could inspire him and his team mates to go beyond their current limits. Demarcus can't lead himself into bettering himself let alone the team - see 10 Ts as an example.
But we can't lay all blame on him. The coach has spent all year saying that defense is the team's weakness. So why did they get a player with good offense stats but who seems to believe that defense is optional. Look at the last 10 games of Toronto versus Sacramento. Raptors are 7-3 and Kings the mirror at 3-7. Sure, the offensive stats have improved in the last 10 games for the Kings but that didn't translate into wins did it. If the Kings need better defense why did the Kings trade for an offensive player who seems bored with defense? Toronto is 7-3 with the players that they got from the Kings. The trade hasn't helped Sacramento has it?
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