If Celtics landed the 2015 #1 draft pick, would u trade it for DeMarcus Cousins?

[ImShakHeIsShaq]

Not a question for me, I would do it 100x and not think twice. I understand why some people wouldn't do it.

Cousins is 24, if he was a draft choice in college right now, I don't see how you don't pick him #1. He has matured and he still has room to grow. You heard nothing bad about Cousins this season until he played us. 

[KeepRondo]

Has Cousins turned Sacramento into a winner?

No, but neither did Kobe Bean Bryant, in the mid 2000's.

And then Kobe got players around him (Odom, Gasol, Bynum, etc) that turned that around for him.

Yeah but normally dominant bigs are able to at least get their team to play 500 ball.

What about KG in 2005-2007?  Over that stretch, the Twolves missed the playoffs each year, going a combined 109-137.

Was KG not dominant during that stretch?  Was he not worth trading for?

oh come on. That is weak. I expect better from you. Those were two losing seasons out of how many? KG had that team on his back for many more. When has Cousins ever shown he can put a team on his back?

Ha.  Condescend much?

If dominant big men always lead their teams to the playoffs, why was KG -- one of the most dominant big men of all-time -- shut out of the playoffs for three years in a row?  Why was he the centerpiece on a lower-tier lottery team?

Very few players are going to win unless they're surrounded by competent teammates.

I think you should look in the mirror regarding this superiority complex you think I have.

And btw

I said normally. You then choose two losing seasons out of how many?

I also never said one big will make you a playoff contender.

Nice try changing the goal line. Didn't work. You made the statement, he backed it up with an example. You lost.

Look, no one is claiming that Cousins is as good as Garnett in his prime. There's probably only about 20 players in their primes that were as good as Garnett. Garnett's winning percentage at Minny was 55%, or a typical 44-38 season. That's not great and the West wasn't as strong then as it is now. So if Garnett was barely able to keep Minny at .500 as great as player as he was, then expecting Cousins to do it when -  (1) and he's not as good; (2) the West is stronger now; and (3) Sac is one of the most dysfunctional organizations in recent NBA history - is pretty ludicrous.

Bob McAdoo lost most of his career. Did he suck? Mutombo lost at Denver. Did he suck? Robert Parish lost at Golden State. Did he suck? The Pistons had losing seasons 4 out of the 7 years Bob Lanier led them in Win Shares. Did he suck? Willis Reed had a losing record 3 years in a row. How about him? Nate Thurmond? Artis Gilmore? History is replete with big men who couldn't get their teams to .500. You'd cut off your right arm and give the #1 overall pick for every single guy I mentioned.

There's reasons to question Cousins. No doubt. But the fact that his team isn't very good isn't really one of them.

I can't respect anyone who says you lose on a sports blog. It did make me laugh tho. 

Go back. Read my words exactly how I wrote them and tell me how I changed anything I wrote.

[LooseCannon]

No.  Stay away!!!

The guy is poison.  Mentally weak/unstable.  Heck, I wouldn't even trade Bass for Cousins.

Don't need Cousins to win Championships - of that I am sure.

Unstable? Maybe. We can debate that.

Emotional? Without question, though so is KG and plenty of other great players.

Mentally weak? No. Just...no. Guys who are mentally weak don't improve their game every single year like Cousins' has, especially not improving every single aspect of it. He's improved virtually everything - scoring, rebounding, passing, free throw shooting, defense, etc. - since he's come into the league. You just don't work that hard and improve like that if you're mentally weak. His improvement tells me that this guy is motivated. Maybe he doesn't always channel it in the best way, but he plays hard.

In that way he reminds me a bit of Rasheed Wallace, another volatile guy (though 'Sheed was far worse both on and off the court). But you didn't question Wallace's desire to win - he worked his ass off and improved his game over the years - and he helped Detroit win it all. Cousins not only doesn't have the same baggage, he's a better player to boot.

I don't like the Sheed comparison.

Rasheed Wallace in his prime was 10 times better on D then Cousins. He also had a better all around game and players wanted to play with him. He was well liked.

Cousins is a good defender who has never been linked to being a locker room problem. He is also a far superior scorer, rebounder, passer etc., yes it is a bad comparison

You don't remember when Cousins was suspended by the Kings a few years ago for reportedly starting a fight with Donte Green in the lockerroom after a loss because Green didn't pass him the ball on the inbounds of the final play of the game?

Cousins was a source of exasperation for John Calipari at Kentucky.  Paul Westphal once issued a statement saying that Cousins had demanded a trade in explaining why Cousins was sent home from a game (and a few days later Westhal was fired).  He was suspended by the Kings after his behavior at half time in the locker room led Smart to tell him to stay there for the second half instead of coming out with the team.

That Mike Malone seemed to have a good relationship with Mike Malone may be more of an exception than a sign of how Cousins will act henceforth.  If Brad Stevens is a good coach, that doesn't strike me as an argument that a Stevens-Cousins relationship will be fruitful.

[FreddieJ]

No.  Stay away!!!

The guy is poison.  Mentally weak/unstable.  Heck, I wouldn't even trade Bass for Cousins.

Don't need Cousins to win Championships - of that I am sure.

Unstable? Maybe. We can debate that.

Emotional? Without question, though so is KG and plenty of other great players.

Mentally weak? No. Just...no. Guys who are mentally weak don't improve their game every single year like Cousins' has, especially not improving every single aspect of it. He's improved virtually everything - scoring, rebounding, passing, free throw shooting, defense, etc. - since he's come into the league. You just don't work that hard and improve like that if you're mentally weak. His improvement tells me that this guy is motivated. Maybe he doesn't always channel it in the best way, but he plays hard.

In that way he reminds me a bit of Rasheed Wallace, another volatile guy (though 'Sheed was far worse both on and off the court). But you didn't question Wallace's desire to win - he worked his ass off and improved his game over the years - and he helped Detroit win it all. Cousins not only doesn't have the same baggage, he's a better player to boot.

I don't like the Sheed comparison.

Rasheed Wallace in his prime was 10 times better on D then Cousins. He also had a better all around game and players wanted to play with him. He was well liked.

Cousins is a good defender who has never been linked to being a locker room problem. He is also a far superior scorer, rebounder, passer etc., yes it is a bad comparison

You don't remember when Cousins was suspended by the Kings a few years ago for reportedly starting a fight with Donte Green in the lockerroom after a loss because Green didn't pass him the ball on the inbounds of the final play of the game?

Cousins was a source of exasperation for John Calipari at Kentucky.  Paul Westphal once issued a statement saying that Cousins had demanded a trade in explaining why Cousins was sent home from a game (and a few days later Westhal was fired).  He was suspended by the Kings after his behavior at half time in the locker room led Smart to tell him to stay there for the second half instead of coming out with the team.

That Mike Malone seemed to have a good relationship with Mike Malone may be more of an exception than a sign of how Cousins will act henceforth.  If Brad Stevens is a good coach, that doesn't strike me as an argument that a Stevens-Cousins relationship will be fruitful.

That is a great run down. I don't deny he has had emotional and maturity issues, but from a fans perspective I have never believed him to be a bad guy, or someone who his teammates en masse don't get along with. If anything I think he is trying evolving into that leadership role.

This summer he went out of his way to work out with the Kings summer league team before the Team USA with the Kings younger players

I go to many Kings games. When Stauskas continues to suck and comes out of the game Cousins at times purposely goes out of his way to pat him and to discuss with him on the bench for a bit

He's taking responsibility for losses etc.

When Thomas was traded Cousins immediately had a positive exchange with him.

I guess I was just saying is I don't see a cancerish entity, but he hates to lose and that has been volatile given the environment. But your right, he might not fit in Boston

[bleedgreen333]

Our defense is strong and Demarcus cousins is a great scorer and rim protecter.... Look at how many 1st rounders we have

[Granath]

Go back. Read my words exactly how I wrote them and tell me how I changed anything I wrote.

Yeah but normally dominant bigs are able to at least get their team to play 500 ball.

As I said, history is replete with dominant bigs who are better players than Cousins who couldn't get their teams to play .500 ball. I just listed half a dozen Hall of Fame centers who had trouble doing it during significant stretches of their careers. You'd be far better off just admitting your statement doesn't hold much water and going on to a better argument regarding Cousins' skills or attitude being an issue. The fact that Sacramento doesn't have a winning record doesn't mean dick when it comes to evaluating DeMarcus Cousins. It's a throwaway statement designed to troll and not to contribute to the conversation. But then again, that's your typical argumentative style so i'm not surprised.

Of course, I don't expect this to matter much in the long run. Unless Cousins' forces a trade, Sac wouldn't give up Cousins for the #1 pick. You just don't give up a guy of his ability and under a reasonable contract who is entering the prime of his career unless you're absolutely forced to do so. Cousins' value would be similar to the price the Celtics paid during the KG trade (who was better, but more costly and far older). It'd probably take the #1 overall this year, the NJ pick next year, another #1 and a player or two that Sac coveted.

[KeepRondo]

No.  Stay away!!!

The guy is poison.  Mentally weak/unstable.  Heck, I wouldn't even trade Bass for Cousins.

Don't need Cousins to win Championships - of that I am sure.

Unstable? Maybe. We can debate that.

Emotional? Without question, though so is KG and plenty of other great players.

Mentally weak? No. Just...no. Guys who are mentally weak don't improve their game every single year like Cousins' has, especially not improving every single aspect of it. He's improved virtually everything - scoring, rebounding, passing, free throw shooting, defense, etc. - since he's come into the league. You just don't work that hard and improve like that if you're mentally weak. His improvement tells me that this guy is motivated. Maybe he doesn't always channel it in the best way, but he plays hard.

In that way he reminds me a bit of Rasheed Wallace, another volatile guy (though 'Sheed was far worse both on and off the court). But you didn't question Wallace's desire to win - he worked his ass off and improved his game over the years - and he helped Detroit win it all. Cousins not only doesn't have the same baggage, he's a better player to boot.

I don't like the Sheed comparison.

Rasheed Wallace in his prime was 10 times better on D then Cousins. He also had a better all around game and players wanted to play with him. He was well liked.

Cousins is a good defender who has never been linked to being a locker room problem. He is also a far superior scorer, rebounder, passer etc., yes it is a bad comparison

You don't remember when Cousins was suspended by the Kings a few years ago for reportedly starting a fight with Donte Green in the lockerroom after a loss because Green didn't pass him the ball on the inbounds of the final play of the game?

Cousins was a source of exasperation for John Calipari at Kentucky.  Paul Westphal once issued a statement saying that Cousins had demanded a trade in explaining why Cousins was sent home from a game (and a few days later Westhal was fired).  He was suspended by the Kings after his behavior at half time in the locker room led Smart to tell him to stay there for the second half instead of coming out with the team.

That Mike Malone seemed to have a good relationship with Mike Malone may be more of an exception than a sign of how Cousins will act henceforth.  If Brad Stevens is a good coach, that doesn't strike me as an argument that a Stevens-Cousins relationship will be fruitful.

That is a great run down. I don't deny he has had emotional and maturity issues, but from a fans perspective I have never believed him to be a bad guy, or someone who his teammates en masse don't get along with. If anything I think he is trying evolving into that leadership role.

This summer he went out of his way to work out with the Kings summer league team before the Team USA with the Kings younger players

I go to many Kings games. When Stauskas continues to suck and comes out of the game Cousins at times purposely goes out of his way to pat him and to discuss with him on the bench for a bit

He's taking responsibility for losses etc.

When Thomas was traded Cousins immediately had a positive exchange with him.

I guess I was just saying is I don't see a cancerish entity, but he hates to lose and that has been volatile given the environment. But your right, he might not fit in Boston

+1 for the nice inside information.

My concern is he hasn't shown he can be the man yet. I wouldn't waste a number one pick on him.

[Greenbeantown]

No, I would take Okafor number 1 overall. Cousins has a bad attitude and got into a fight not that long ago with Marcus Smart, and ended up getting ejected. Take Okafor who has a ton of potential.

[bleedgreen333]

Has Cousins turned Sacramento into a winner?

That's a good point but Sacramento doesn't quite have the all stars on their team... Still smart move

[tazzmaniac]

No.  Stay away!!!

The guy is poison.  Mentally weak/unstable.  Heck, I wouldn't even trade Bass for Cousins.

Don't need Cousins to win Championships - of that I am sure.

Unstable? Maybe. We can debate that.

Emotional? Without question, though so is KG and plenty of other great players.

Mentally weak? No. Just...no. Guys who are mentally weak don't improve their game every single year like Cousins' has, especially not improving every single aspect of it. He's improved virtually everything - scoring, rebounding, passing, free throw shooting, defense, etc. - since he's come into the league. You just don't work that hard and improve like that if you're mentally weak. His improvement tells me that this guy is motivated. Maybe he doesn't always channel it in the best way, but he plays hard.

In that way he reminds me a bit of Rasheed Wallace, another volatile guy (though 'Sheed was far worse both on and off the court). But you didn't question Wallace's desire to win - he worked his ass off and improved his game over the years - and he helped Detroit win it all. Cousins not only doesn't have the same baggage, he's a better player to boot.

I don't like the Sheed comparison.

Rasheed Wallace in his prime was 10 times better on D then Cousins. He also had a better all around game and players wanted to play with him. He was well liked.

Cousins is a good defender who has never been linked to being a locker room problem. He is also a far superior scorer, rebounder, passer etc., yes it is a bad comparison

good defender? The guy doesn't even run back on defense . Especially if he thinks he is fouled , he just straight up quits on the play and won't even run back . I have seen this numerous times in numerous games . Unless we are bringing in other vets that can keep him in line, stay FAR away from this knucklehead .

This isn't even close to accurate.

At least as of a couple days ago, the Kings starting lineup of Cousins-Thompson-Gay-McLemore-Collison is statistically the best defensive lineup in the NBA, allowing 88.6 points per 100 possessions. 



Cousins is averaging 1.6 blocks and 1.3 steals, while dominating in defensive rebounding (second in the league in DRB%).  He's allowing 46.8% shooting at the rim, which ranks near the top of the league for guys who defend as many shots as Cousins does.  (The only guys better than him at the rim this year, among the top-25 in terms of volume of shots defensed, are Howard, Hibbert, Ibaka, and Duncan.)  He's also fifth in the league in Defensive Real Plus Minus.

Cousins has been an elite defender this year, and should be a legit candidate for DPOY.

Blatantly unfair of you to bring facts into the discussion.  It is amazing how a person's emotional like or dislike of a player can lead them to an opinion that is so far distorted from reality.  BTW, how do you get negative Tommy Points? 

[KeepRondo]

Go back. Read my words exactly how I wrote them and tell me how I changed anything I wrote.

Yeah but normally dominant bigs are able to at least get their team to play 500 ball.

As I said, history is replete with dominant bigs who are better players than Cousins who couldn't get their teams to play .500 ball. I just listed half a dozen Hall of Fame centers who had trouble doing it during significant stretches of their careers. You'd be far better off just admitting your statement doesn't hold much water and going on to a better argument regarding Cousins' skills or attitude being an issue. The fact that Sacramento doesn't have a winning record doesn't mean dick when it comes to evaluating DeMarcus Cousins. It's a throwaway statement designed to troll and not to contribute to the conversation. But then again, that's your typical argumentative style so i'm not surprised.

Of course, I don't expect this to matter much in the long run. Unless Cousins' forces a trade, Sac wouldn't give up Cousins for the #1 pick. You just don't give up a guy of his ability and under a reasonable contract who is entering the prime of his career unless you're absolutely forced to do so. Cousins' value would be similar to the price the Celtics paid during the KG trade (who was better, but more costly and far older). It'd probably take the #1 overall this year, the NJ pick next year, another #1 and a player or two that Sac coveted.

To be honest I stopped reading when you said I lost.

And I won't consider Cousins a dominant big until he consistently dominates both sides of the ball and actually gets his team over 500.

[KeepRondo]

No.  Stay away!!!

The guy is poison.  Mentally weak/unstable.  Heck, I wouldn't even trade Bass for Cousins.

Don't need Cousins to win Championships - of that I am sure.

Unstable? Maybe. We can debate that.

Emotional? Without question, though so is KG and plenty of other great players.

Mentally weak? No. Just...no. Guys who are mentally weak don't improve their game every single year like Cousins' has, especially not improving every single aspect of it. He's improved virtually everything - scoring, rebounding, passing, free throw shooting, defense, etc. - since he's come into the league. You just don't work that hard and improve like that if you're mentally weak. His improvement tells me that this guy is motivated. Maybe he doesn't always channel it in the best way, but he plays hard.

In that way he reminds me a bit of Rasheed Wallace, another volatile guy (though 'Sheed was far worse both on and off the court). But you didn't question Wallace's desire to win - he worked his ass off and improved his game over the years - and he helped Detroit win it all. Cousins not only doesn't have the same baggage, he's a better player to boot.

I don't like the Sheed comparison.

Rasheed Wallace in his prime was 10 times better on D then Cousins. He also had a better all around game and players wanted to play with him. He was well liked.

Cousins is a good defender who has never been linked to being a locker room problem. He is also a far superior scorer, rebounder, passer etc., yes it is a bad comparison

good defender? The guy doesn't even run back on defense . Especially if he thinks he is fouled , he just straight up quits on the play and won't even run back . I have seen this numerous times in numerous games . Unless we are bringing in other vets that can keep him in line, stay FAR away from this knucklehead .

This isn't even close to accurate.

At least as of a couple days ago, the Kings starting lineup of Cousins-Thompson-Gay-McLemore-Collison is statistically the best defensive lineup in the NBA, allowing 88.6 points per 100 possessions. 



Cousins is averaging 1.6 blocks and 1.3 steals, while dominating in defensive rebounding (second in the league in DRB%).  He's allowing 46.8% shooting at the rim, which ranks near the top of the league for guys who defend as many shots as Cousins does.  (The only guys better than him at the rim this year, among the top-25 in terms of volume of shots defensed, are Howard, Hibbert, Ibaka, and Duncan.)  He's also fifth in the league in Defensive Real Plus Minus.

Cousins has been an elite defender this year, and should be a legit candidate for DPOY.

Blatantly unfair of you to bring facts into the discussion.  It is amazing how a person's emotional like or dislike of a player can lead them to an opinion that is so far distorted from reality.  BTW, how do you get negative Tommy Points?

Lets see how those stats hold up. I see half the games he played were against bad teams.

I've also seen stats earlier in the season that had Steph Curry as a top defender in the league.

[GreenFaith1819]

The funny thing here is that "IF" we get the number 1 pick, how long do we think Okafor and Co. would take to turn this team around?

5 years?

Would he come in here and dominate from the start? No.

Would a FA, even a top one, be willing to come here and be patient as Okafor is groomed? That's asking a LOT, no matter how much money you threw their way.

If Sacramento is ever looking at potential trade partners in the event that they are trying to trade Demarcus, I'd hope they took a serious look at BOS. We already have a LOT to offer.

Man if we could get Cousins...that'd make me smile.

[saltlover]

No.  Stay away!!!

The guy is poison.  Mentally weak/unstable.  Heck, I wouldn't even trade Bass for Cousins.

Don't need Cousins to win Championships - of that I am sure.

Unstable? Maybe. We can debate that.

Emotional? Without question, though so is KG and plenty of other great players.

Mentally weak? No. Just...no. Guys who are mentally weak don't improve their game every single year like Cousins' has, especially not improving every single aspect of it. He's improved virtually everything - scoring, rebounding, passing, free throw shooting, defense, etc. - since he's come into the league. You just don't work that hard and improve like that if you're mentally weak. His improvement tells me that this guy is motivated. Maybe he doesn't always channel it in the best way, but he plays hard.

In that way he reminds me a bit of Rasheed Wallace, another volatile guy (though 'Sheed was far worse both on and off the court). But you didn't question Wallace's desire to win - he worked his ass off and improved his game over the years - and he helped Detroit win it all. Cousins not only doesn't have the same baggage, he's a better player to boot.

I don't like the Sheed comparison.

Rasheed Wallace in his prime was 10 times better on D then Cousins. He also had a better all around game and players wanted to play with him. He was well liked.

Cousins is a good defender who has never been linked to being a locker room problem. He is also a far superior scorer, rebounder, passer etc., yes it is a bad comparison

good defender? The guy doesn't even run back on defense . Especially if he thinks he is fouled , he just straight up quits on the play and won't even run back . I have seen this numerous times in numerous games . Unless we are bringing in other vets that can keep him in line, stay FAR away from this knucklehead .

This isn't even close to accurate.

At least as of a couple days ago, the Kings starting lineup of Cousins-Thompson-Gay-McLemore-Collison is statistically the best defensive lineup in the NBA, allowing 88.6 points per 100 possessions. 



Cousins is averaging 1.6 blocks and 1.3 steals, while dominating in defensive rebounding (second in the league in DRB%).  He's allowing 46.8% shooting at the rim, which ranks near the top of the league for guys who defend as many shots as Cousins does.  (The only guys better than him at the rim this year, among the top-25 in terms of volume of shots defensed, are Howard, Hibbert, Ibaka, and Duncan.)  He's also fifth in the league in Defensive Real Plus Minus.

Cousins has been an elite defender this year, and should be a legit candidate for DPOY.

Blatantly unfair of you to bring facts into the discussion.  It is amazing how a person's emotional like or dislike of a player can lead them to an opinion that is so far distorted from reality.  BTW, how do you get negative Tommy Points?

Lets see how those stats hold up. I see half the games he played were against bad teams.

I've also seen stats earlier in the season that had Steph Curry as a top defender in the league.

Half the teams in this league are pretty terrible.  Everyone plays about half their games against bad teams.

[BDeCosta26]

People see Lebron lead that joke of a team to the finals his first time in Cleveland or AI dragging the sixers into contention during his prime and think "That guys not worth giving max money to, he can't even get his team into the playoffs."

While basketball is the most star-centric of the major sports, it is still very much a team game. What these people don't understand is that only 1- maybe 5 players in the league can do that in any given year. And when they do, there's normally other factors involved like when AI was with Phili the overall level of talent in the league was lower than it is now. Their conference strength plays a role, playoff seeding, all kinds of things. It's the same think people said about KLove, and people say about Rondo, but it's true for 98% of players in the league. Your not gonna win anything if there's no talent around you. You don't need one of the guys in the 2% to win a chip. It helps, but you don't need it.

If it's a straight up, just #1 overall for Boogie, you have to do it. You just have to take a under 28 top 10 player if he becomes available to you. Especially if it's just for the 1 pick. DA wouldn't even have to scurry up some talent for him to play with. He could just stay the course with the rest of the picks and build a team suited to Cousins. Okafor could be a really great player. But Boogie is a Top-10 NBA player right now who is what, 24 years old? This is why we have a treasure trove of assets, for the moment when a guy like Cousins forces his way out of a bad situation like Sacto.

Btw, I think the whole personality issue is totally overblown. He showed some immaturity early in his career. He hasn't taken all that we'll to the losing situation he's been in. But he's shown a lot more maturity in the past year or two, especially when his team is doing well, or in the World Cup. And when we consider what has happened during his time in Northern CA, I think he would thrive in a place with a winning culture like Boston. He's not a head case. He's not Lance Stephenson. And some of you really wanted him.