The Sacramento Kings know they have a foundational player in DeMarcus Cousins and while there have been issues with attitude, suspensions and working with coaches, the team still wants to keep him long-term and they feel his best days are ahead, which is why the Team USA minicamp is so important for the star.
Cousins will be working out with Team USA this week in minicamp and this comes as Cousins was mentioned in the offseason in trade rumors. According to the Sacramento Bee, Cousins said that he is loyal to the city of Sacramento and that he is not planning on leaving anytime soon and now with a new coach and general manager in the fold, the franchise is ready to turn things around. Michael Malone is in the fold as coach and after butting heads the past few years, Cousins looks ready to dominate.
Cousins likely will want a deal near five years at $80 million and according to the report, the team has now been given a deadline for a trade or a deal, but the league deadline will be October 31 and that is a big day for both sides, as they could avoid free agency with an agreement. USA Basketball chairman Jerry Colangelo said last year that Cousins was immature and now he will have the chance to push that aside after he had brushes with Paul Westphal and Keith Smart.
The 22-year-old star is young and many see him as having some amazing potential as a superstar if he can get everything else on the outside together. The team has done a solid job of adding talent and brought in Greivis Vasquez, and power forwards Luc Mbah a Moute and Carl Landry on a deal while also looking to sign Monta Ellis and although that didn't work out, it showed that the Kings want to be players in free agency. Cousins was suspended at one point last year and now he has the chance to build on his stats of 17 points per game and nearly 10 rebounds. Landry is a solid addition as well after averaging 10.8 points and six rebounds for the Warriors last season.
The Kings may not yet be done dealing this summer as well, as Jimmer Fredette has been on the trading block all year and rumors from ESPN.com and Yahoo say that the Bucks, Rockets, Nuggets and Chicago Bulls are possible options for the former first round pick. The team also has been looking to trade Chuck Hayes, as both players have basically expiring contracts and Fredette has been a disappointment in California. Fredette has a $2.4 million salary for next season and after averaging 7.4 points, 1.5 assists and 1.1 rebounds, he could be a solid bench player for a number of teams.