DeMarcus Cousins finds himself once again the center of controversy. On Monday, Cousins confronted a Sacramento Bee columnist who has consistently criticized the All-Star center, referring to him as a "cancer" and implicating an incident with his brother at a Tampa night club that resulted in his sibling's arrest as proof of a character issue.
There are a number of ways to consider this latest brushup with the media. We outlined the merits on both sides of the argument, but at this point, getting caught up in a blame game between Cousins and the local media is a waste of everyone's time. No one thinks the current situation is tenable. Cousins remains an emotional volcano, occasionally erupting and making a bad situation with the Kings roster worse year after year. He's a world-class talent trapped in a low-class situation. He has been unable to raise the ramshackle tugboats that have surrounded his harbor, and he has sent enough waves splashing over the boardwalk and into the seaside city.
A trade has been expected for years. Sometimes superstar trades rise up and happen suddenly, popping up out of nowhere and ending just as fast, like a volcano. Sometimes they are like radioactive material, slowly decaying everything around them until they're replaced. A trade seems like the best thing for all involved, despite fans' understandable reluctance to part with a top-10 player.
But now, the problem is becoming worse, because Cousins' attitude, combined with these recent events (which it should be noted have been very outside the ordinary for Cousins) have conspired to make potential trade partners reluctant to do the deal in acquiring Cousins. Bleacher Report's Howard Beck noted that multiple GMs are not on board with bringing Cousins in.
Every GM I've asked recently has effectively said, "Hell no" on trading for Cousins. This incident underlines why: https://t.co/ENsMZe6Jcb
— Howard Beck (@HowardBeck) December 17, 2016
Now, it's one thing to say you wouldn't, and another to actually turn down the offer if a superstar player is on the table for you. Situations for general managers are constantly evolving, and if push comes to shove, there will always be a deal involving Cousins that a GM just couldn't refuse. However, it's notable that the balance between Cousins as a tipping point toward a team winning a title and Cousins being a problem case who isn't worth the trouble has definitely started to topple.
Kings supporters would tell you this doesn't change anything. He's under contract until July 1, 2018. He's a constant pillar of support in the Sacramento community. He's too valuable to trade. They can always turn this around. They just need the right combination. Coach Dave Joerger has started to get through to them. (The Kings have won three of their past six, which is like a five-game winning streak in Sactown.)
But these situations are much tougher to deal with in person. Dealing with the strain on the locker room and dealing with an unhappy person takes its toll on you. Cousins seems to be (understandably) getting more frustrated by the minute with his situation and the rest of the organization seems to be (understandably) getting more worn out on his act by the minute.
If GMs are starting to tilt in this direction, it's going to make it harder to get the return the Kings are going to want. They'll still get good return because Cousins is a star. But it's about degrees. And if this makes teams think twice before doing a deal, or walking away because they don't want the headache, it's going to extend the timeline, which means they could enter next season with Cousins leaving at the end of it and under pressure to get something, any thing for him.
It's not about this issue with the columnist. It's about the entire situation with Cousins, and why so many have gone over to wondering if, despite his incredible, amazing talent, Cousins simply might not be worth the pain of dealing with all that comes with him.
