The rumor mill is not stopping just yet for the Sacramento Kings' DeMarcus Cousins. The search for the latest buzz might lead us to Shaquille O'Neal saying that they might already take things "differently" with regard to Cousins' long-rumored trade. With experts already delving into the Cousins trade rumor mill, NBA fans are now becoming more confused than ever.
Supporters of Cousins and the Kings were almost convinced with the trade rumor that O'Neal has recently made more solid. With Cousins' contract ending in 2018 and with his reported misbehavior, plus the Kings underperformance, the team's big man is now being a constant target of speculations.
Cousins was initially rumored to be traded in exchange for players of either the Portland Trail Blazers or the Denver Nuggets. However, another theory insists the 26-year-old center would head to the Boston Celtics before the year ends. With Cousins grabbing the attention of NBA enthusiasts with his supposed trade deal, even the experts and critics have now differing opinions regarding the matter.
Reports from earlier this month featured NBA executives commenting that the Kings should trade Cousins before the February trade comes. This has then sparked speculations that Cousins is to head somewhere else earlier, specifically this coming December.
ESPN's Zach Lowe gave an interesting comment through his podcast when he was asked by David Thorpe about his take on the Cousins trade rumors. The long-time blogger said he doesn't really believe that the Celtics coach, Brad Stevens, would want to handle Cousins and let go of Avery Bradley or Jae Crowder just to take him in.
"A year ago, six months ago, I would have said yes," Lowe said, as cited by Chatsports. "And what's interesting to me -- look, everyone knows the Celtics have the goods to make a real offer, although ... maybe that Nets pick isn't the golden ticket we thought it was going to be. We'll see. I think the Nets will regress, long story short. So I think (Celtics president of basketball operations) Danny (Ainge) would gamble. I don't think that is the majority view of the organization, including the coach," he explained.
"I don't think Brad Stevens wants to touch DeMarcus Cousins with a 10-foot pole. And that carries a lot of weight there," Lowe continued. "Not only that, they just signed a center. And they think Al Horford is a center, and will play more center as pieces come and go in Boston. And so I don't know what that does to Boston's hunger to acquire a superstar big man who is going to be a locker room question mark," he said.
In opposition to this, another ESPN columnist, Jackie MacMullan, shared her thoughts about the speculations saying Cousins is someone that the Celtics do not want to include in its lineup. With all the talks linking Cousins to his team's internal problems, MacMullan pointed out how Cousins is not a fit to the Celtics' already great team. She even placed an end to the never-ending Cousins trade rumors with a confirmation from the owner of the Sacramento Kings himself.
Fans in favor of Cousins staying a bit longer with the Kings might already want to relax, now that a confirmation came out that the Kings' owner and chairman, Vivek Ranadivé, is not planning to trade his franchise's biggest asset.
Watch how Cousins has been carrying his team in their recent games, recording 33 points in their previous game with the Magic.
