Why Boogie, reportedly parting with Rockets, isn't Dubs fit

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Former Kings and Warriors center DeMarcus Cousins has had an interesting few days.

On Friday, ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported, citing sources, that the Houston Rockets had guaranteed Cousins' $2.3 million contract for the rest of the 2020-21 NBA season after signing him in the offseason.

On Saturday, The Athletic's Shams Charania reported, citing sources, that Cousins and the Rockets now are expected to part ways in the coming days.

With a former All-Star center, who is averaging 9.6 points and 7.6 rebounds in 25 games this season, expected to hit the open market, teams in need of a center will be chomping at the bit to sign Cousins.

And while the Warriors have played the last 10 games without a true center, Cousins rejoining Golden State doesn't seem like it would work this time.

It's not that Cousins isn't a style fit for the Warriors. He is. But with James Wiseman and Kevon Looney expected to return from injury this week, there simply wouldn't be any room for Cousins.

Warriors coach Steve Kerr told reporters Friday that he is going to have some difficult conversations with his players when Wiseman and Looney return, meaning guys that are playing right now might not get as much playing time when the centers are back in the rotation.

"The biggest challenge is figuring out who I'm going to play," Kerr said prior to the Warriors' loss to the Orlando Magic on Friday. "Everybody I've thrown out there has really earned the right to be on the floor. But I can't play 12 guys. It's just too many ... so that's the trickiest. We've had a lot of guys play well and we've got to figure out who's going to play."

So, adding Cousins to the mix would make things even trickier for Kerr.

Of course, if the Warriors were willing to release a player currently in the rotation, maybe there's room and playing time for Cousins. But that doesn't seem likely to happen.

RELATED: Cousins rips Harden for his Rockets "disrespect"

Based on the current roster construction, Kerr's comments and the need to let Wiseman play so he can develop, adding Cousins doesn't make much sense right now. It did before the 2018-19 season, but not now.

Cousins likely will latch on with a contender that can offer him 20-25 minutes of playing time. That's a number the Warriors can't commit to at the moment.

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