DeMarcus Cousins trade speculation won’t die as long as the Kings struggle, and they’re 6-9 – on pace for their seventh losing season in his seven-year career.
But that doesn’t mean Sacramento will actually deal the star center.
Jackie MacMullan on CSN Northeast:
Remember, Ranadive recently said he doesn’t have much basketball involvement. This is just another example of why that’s difficult to believe.
Ranadive desperately wants to win now, and Cousins provides the most direct path. Dealing him for draft picks and younger players would extend a seemingly perpetual rebuilding process even further.
That might be the right move. Cousins becomes an unrestricted free agent in 2018, and it might be better to get something for him now than lose him for nothing.
It might also be the wrong move. The Kings’ problems extend well beyond Cousins, and they’re not winning with him now anyway. Dealing him won’t fix the culture that makes Sacramento basketball hell.
It all depends what Cousins would return in a trade, and that’s unknown to me. What I do know: I wouldn’t be categorically opposed to dealing him.