On his way out the door in Sacramento guard Isaiah Thomas said what a number of scouts had said before about DeMarcus Cousins.
“I think if he ran the floor a little more, he would make the game a lot easier for him.”
That was one of the things holding him back from getting a roster spot on Team USA (that and his attitude towards authority and referees, which has improved). Team USA has gone with the “our athleticism can overwhelm you and we will run you into the ground” system and it’s worked quite well. If you can’t keep up you get left behind.
But he ran well for team USA in scrimmages and looked good — until he went down when he and Kenneth Faried bangs knees. That kept him out of a couple scrimmages but couldn’t keep him off the team (especially after he played against Puerto Rico last Friday night).
Cousins told the Kings official Web site he is healed and pumped to have reached a career goal.
“I’ve said it time and time again — it’s a goal of mine for this summer,” said Cousins post-game Friday. “It’s a huge honor. Who wouldn’t want to represent their country?”
Although a knee injury caused him to miss valuable practice time and the squad’s first exhibition contest on Aug. 16, the Kings center discloses he’s fully recovered from the setback and has methodically studied and aimed to execute the coaching staff’s game plan.
Cousins is going to come off the bench because Anthony Davis is a much better fit as the rim-running/rim-protecting five Mike Krzyzewski needs with this style. Cousins will get the chance to prove he should get backup minutes ahead of Andre Drummond and Mason Plumlee.
But where Cousins will really prove his worth is when the USA runs into other teams with big, skilled centers. Specifically Spain, which has Marc Gasol starting and can move Pau Gasol or Serge Ibaka in that role when they go a little smaller. USA teammate Kyrie Irving gets it.
If Cousins can carry that over to the NBA season, it will be another step forward for the Kings.