DeMarcus Cousins (Photo : Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images)
NBA trade rumors involving DeMarcus Cousins have popped up once again with the trade deadline less than a week away. The Orlando Magic reportedly could have acquired Cousins this season but they turned down the Sacramento Kings' offer.
According to Ric Bucher of Bleacher Report, the Magic turned down the Kings offer of Cousins in exchange for Nikola Vucevic, Evan Fournier and draft picks. Magic general manager Rob Hennigan was not interested in "Boogie" because he might leave in free agency and he is another "high-maintenance" big man.
The Magic have too much history of "high-maintenance" centers and it has created a lot of drama over the years. Shaquille O'Neal was on his way to become the greatest Magic player of all time when he left Orlando and joined the Los Angeles Lakers in 1998.
Another center is Dwight Howard, who forced his way out of Orlando in 2012 with a trade to the Lakers. It has left the Magic rebuilding since then and they seem to be heading in that direction once again after a disastrous season.
Hennigan built the Magic to contend for a playoff spot but they just have a record 21-37 record after the first half of the season. They already traded Serge Ibaka, who was acquired for a hefty price in the offseason, to the Toronto Raptors for a loss.
The GM's signing of Bismack Biyombo is also an epic flop and they are heading towards another rebuild. On the other hand, the Kings can't seem to make up their minds regarding Cousins. There were talks of not trading him and signing an extension but that's not the case at the moment.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of The Vertical, the Kings are having trade discussions to send Cousins to the New Orleans Pelicans. Kings majority owner Vivek Ranadive changed his mind about signing the All-Star to a five-year, $209 million deal.
Ranadive is also unhappy Cousins in recent weeks because of two incidents. First were his expletive remarks after the Kings beat the Golden State Warriors on February 6. The second one was Cousins' 17th technical foul that resulted in a one game suspension.
Nevertheless, these just NBA trade rumors at the moment and should be taken with a grain of salt. However, expect more of these in the coming days as the NBA trade deadline draws to a close.
