Anthony Davis: With healthy DeMarcus Cousins, Pelicans ‘coulda won it all'

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When DeMarcus Cousins went down with a torn Achilles last January, the New Orleans Pelicans were 27-21.

Fellow All-Star center Anthony Davis was left to lead the way, and the Pelicans went on to finish 48-34 and secured the sixth seed in the Western Conference playoffs. They then swept the No. 3-seeded Blazers in the first round.

But in the Western Conference semifinals, they ran into the Warriors and lost the series in five games.

According to Davis, that result might have been different if Cousins had been healthy.

"Just imagine if we had DeMarcus through the whole thing last year," Davis told The Athletic's Joe Vardon. "We think we coulda won it all."

Davis' comment was made during an answer about injuries being the toughest part of playing in the NBA.

Davis can believe all he wants that the Pelicans could have beaten the Warriors with a healthy Cousins, but in the three regular-season matchups when Boogie was OK, Golden State won each time.

If the Pelicans had somehow gotten past the Warriors, they would have run into a tough Houston Rockets team that pushed the champs to seven games.

So, we're not convinced the Pelicans could have hoisted the Larry O'Brien Trophy with a healthy Cousins.

Davis and Cousins, now a Warrior, will have a chance to reconnect next Wednesday when the Pelicans visit Oakland to play the champs. Boogie is nearing the finish line on his rehab process. Will he be on the court against his former teammate? We'll see.

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