DeMarcus Cousins' disappointment in Kings? 'The dishonesty'
Superstar center DeMarcus Cousins was introduced as a member of the New Orleans Pelicans on Wednesday, officially ushering in a new era of basketball in The Big Easy.
Cousins, at 6-feet-11, who was traded from the Sacramento Kings Sunday night for Buddy Hield, Tyreke Evans, Langston Galloway and a first and second round pick in 2017, now joins power forward and fellow ex-Kentucky Wildcat Anthony Davis (6-10) to form arguably the best big-man tandem in the league today.
How excited is he to play alongside another superstar for the first time in his career, you ask?
"I think our games complement one another," Cousins told reporters during Wednesday's introductory press conference. "Being together, I think, is gonna make both of our jobs easy. I'm excited for the opportunity. I think we can wreak havoc on this league. Will it happen overnight? Probably not. But the potential is scary."
GALLERY: DEMARCUS COUSINS THROUGH THE YEARS
Davis, who entered the NBA two years after Cousins, echoed Cousins' excitement after practice on Wednesday.
"Me and him are very close," Davis told reporters. "Actually, we're gonna go to dinner tonight. Since Kentucky, he came back and played when I was there, and we got close ever since. I remember he was trying to teach me some moves when I was in college when he came down and played with us. And just throughout the course of the years we've both been in the league, it was always fun going up against him. Like I said, he's kind of like my big brother and we just try to depend on each other."
Though the move won't propel the Pelicans, who sit 2 1/2 games out of eighth place in the West, into the NBA's upper echelon, it puts them on the right track and should shake some things up in the playoff picture.
"It's just a matter of putting it all together," Pelicans coach Alvin Gentry said. "Obviously, the chemistry thing, I don't see that that's going to be a problem at all. As DeMarcus says, I think their games are very complementary of each other. ... It's not gonna happen overnight, but I'm extremely, extremely excited about the possibilities."
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Cousins — who spent the first 6 1/2 years of his NBA career in Sacramento, where off-the-court clashes often overshadowed his play — said that he hasn't talked to anybody from the Kings since the trade was announced. When asked what disappointed him the most about the trade, he said, "The dishonesty that came with it."
That said, he expressed that he has no hard feelings toward the organization.
"I'm not sour, I'm not mad, I don't have any ill feelings," Cousins said. "This is a business and these type of things happen. I'm comfortable with it, I'm in a good place, and I'm ready to get to work."
He also noted that the trade, which happened just hours after Sunday night's All-Star Game, was a bit unexpected, but said he's "ready to get to work."
"It's been an emotional rollercoaster," Cousins said. "Everything happened so quickly. Very unexpected, but I'm a firm believer in that everything happens for a reason. I'm excited for this opportunity. I'm looking forward to it. I plan on embracing my teammates, this team, this organization, this city. This is home for me now. I'm extremely excited. I'm ready to get to work."
As for his decision to change his jersey from No. 15 to No. 0?
"New life."
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