DeMarcus Cousins of the Sacramento Kings looks on against the New York Knicks during the first half at Madison Square Garden on December 4, 2016 in New York City. (Photo : Getty Images/Michael Reaves)
DeMarcus Cousins of the Sacramento Kings is one of the players linked to many NBA rumors with the trade deadline less than two weeks away. The Kings have not made Cousins available but should the Houston Rockets try to acquire him when he becomes available?
The 26-year-old All-Star center is currently the best big man in the NBA today. However, his tenure in Sacramento is surrounded with a lot of controversies with the coaching staff and front office. He has also failed to lead the Kings to the playoffs in his six seasons in Sacramento.
According to Aliene Voisin of the Sacramento Bee, the Kings are facing a difficult decision regarding the future of Cousins. Teams like the Boston Celtics, Dallas Mavericks, Los Angeles Lakers and many others are surely interested in acquiring the best center in the league.
The assets coming from a Cousins trade will surely help the Kings' rebuild but will the front office pull the trigger? In an interview with ESPN, Kings general manager Vlade Divac insisted that the team is not trading Cousins at the deadline and he will remain in Sacramento for a very long time.
"We're not trading DeMarcus. We hope he's here for a long time," Divac said on Wednesday.
However, there is no assurance that Cousins will remain in Sacramento if the Kings receive an offer they can't resist. One of the teams that should trade for the Kentucky alum is the playoff-bound, James Harden-led Rockets, per Joe Giglio of NJ.com.
The Rockets are one superstar away from being title contenders and Cousins can certainly improve their already explosive offense. He also eases pressure off of Harden, who is having an MVP season but he could get gassed out when the playoffs come.
Rockets general manager Darryl Morey was asked by the Houston Chronicle if the team is planning to make a big move at the trade deadline. Morey revealed that they would try to trade for a defensive player but he's not going to make a deal that will disrupt the chemistry.
"We have a rotation that has played very well. It's hard to add anything that would into create a weakness somewhere else. If you feel the defense needs to improve, you can try to add a defensive player," Morey said.
