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Grant Hughes National NBA Featured Columnist
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — DeMarcus Cousins will spend the rest of the 2016-17 NBA season walking on eggshells.
Having already served a league-mandated suspension for accruing 16 technical fouls, Cousins faces subsequent one-game bans for every two additional violations. Subduing emotion has always been difficult for the All-Star big man, but now the penalty for failure is more severe than ever.
Every incident that could produce a shout, scowl or diatribe against officials suddenly comes at a steeper price. Errant hands to the face of Donatas Motiejunas get extra scrutiny, for example. Reactions to low blows from Buddy Hield, obvious no-calls and every other potential outburst could result in another team-crippling suspension.
And you'd better believe it's weighing on Cousins.
"I don't know how to be myself anymore," he said softly from his locker stall at the Golden 1 Center on Friday night.
The Kings had just engineered a 22-point comeback to steal a win from the visiting Atlanta Hawks, but more importantly, it was Cousins' first night back from his initial suspension. He admitted the threat of future discipline affected his performance. Hence the miniature existential emergency.
"It's well known I'm a very emotional player," Cousins later explained to Bleacher Report. "I play with a lot of passion, a lot of emotion. I know that's what makes me the player that I am. When I'm kind of crucified for how I play, and they want change, it's hard for me to be the same type of player...It's just me trying to find the balance. I'm trying to make the adjustment, I'm trying to make the change for the better."
Can he sustain his productivity while snuffing out the fire that led to his suspension? And can he do it as the pressure of the season's stretch run intensifies?
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Cousins understands the stakes. He knows his team is within sniffing distance of the franchise's first playoff berth since 2007. And he knows one game lost to suspension here or there could be the difference between reaching what he's called his only goal and falling short again.
"The guy's trying so hard," head coach Dave Joerger said. "He's an emotional player, so it's like he's playing with one hand behind his back if he can't ever say anything. He doesn't want to hurt the team. He doesn't want to get another technical."
Cousins survived the comeback win against Atlanta without incurring tech No. 17, but it was no easy thing. He was sluggish, visibly frustrated and unable to hide the strain of, well...restraint. Is his effectiveness divisible from his emotion?
"I'm dealing with my own demons right now," he said. "I've got to focus on what's going on at the moment, and I did a terrible job of that."
Two nights later, Cousins was assessed a first-quarter technical foul for an errant swing of the arm that caught New Orleans Pelicans forward Motiejunas in the face. In order to compose himself, Cousins actually left the floor and went to the locker room.
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"It was kind of hard for me with that one because of the situation that had just occurred where I come back and the slightest thing and I'm back (facing suspension)," Cousins said. "It's hard, but I had to gather myself, refocus and get back to the main objective which is winning the game. I've got to walk the straight and narrow. It's all I can do."
Sacramento won that game as well, getting 28 points, 14 rebounds and seven assists from its best player—despite an ejection-triggering groin shot from Pelicans guard Hield. It was as if the basketball gods were testing Boogie. To his credit, he passed. Plenty of players with less volatile reputations would have snapped in that situation.
But so many more games lie ahead. So many more trials have yet to be undertaken. And, again, Cousins' margin for error is basically nil.
How he handles the challenge he's helped create for himself (despite protestations about unfair treatment from officials, he is partly responsible for his situation) will either signal the kind of growth so many have been waiting to see or reaffirm the doubts that have dogged him for years.
Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images
He'll have help.
"I lean on all my teammates, not just Matt (Barnes). But he is the voice of our team. Everybody leans on Matt when times get hard because he's been through it all, seen it all on all levels."
Barnes, like Cousins, is no stranger to image problems.
"He's got a tough rap—the reputation he's earned," Barnes told ESPN-Tencent's Yuan Fang. "Whether it's good or bad. We both have bad and that took me my whole career to change mine and it hasn't worked. He just has to be able to adjust within his reputation and still be himself. He has to keeps his head."
Barnes has been a calming figure all season, which may seem odd given his volatile reputation. He commands respect like no on else on the roster, and you can see it in the locker room and on the floor. When the Kings found life in the second half against Atlanta, they did so after Barnes gathered his teammates together at the foul line before the third quarter.
When he motioned for a huddle, everyone—Cousins included—hustled over, leaned in close and listened to the veteran as he clapped his hands and exhorted them to perform.
"I thought Matt did a good job of really talking to us the whole game," Darren Collison said. "He was the leader when things weren't going well."
This is about more than Cousins' personal journey, though. The Kings have professed commitment to their big man, with general manager Vlade Divac saying Cousins won't be traded. A contract extension worth upwards of $200 million will likely come by July.
Cousins could validate that faith by adjusting his behavior and upping his level of play. Or he could falter and, in doing so, force the Kings to reconsider their committed stance. Worse still, he might come up short and get that max extension anyway, which would effectively consign Sacramento to another half-decade of maddening sub-mediocrity.
We've seen a lot from DeMarcus Cousins over the last six years.
He's got six weeks to show us something more.
Kings Insider's Notebook
Free Willie
Joerger is loath to play Willie Cauley-Stein with Cousins, which is probably frustrating for fans who'd like to see athleticism like this alongside the proven productivity of an All-Star big man:
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Is the Phil Jackson/Carmelo Anthony Feud Being Blown Out of Proportion? Clutch Curry: Is Steph the Master of Late-Game Heroics? Greg Anthony's Starting 5: the NBA's Biggest Underperformers So Far DeMarcus Cousins Pokes Fun at Joakim Noah's Shooting Form Russell Westbrook Gets His 7th Straight Triple-Double Sam Dekker Posterizes Enes Kanter Cleveland Cavaliers Rick Roll'd Ric Bucher's NBA Power Rankings LeBron vs. Melo: the Rivalry Continues Between Superstar Friends Can VR Save DeAndre Jordan's Free-Throw Percentage? Klay Thompson Career High 60 Points
But Sacramento's defense has been untenably bad in the 119 minutes the duo has played together, and it's only gotten worse as the season has worn on. In 50 minutes since Jan. 1, the Kings have allowed 118.1 points per 100 possessions with Cousins and Cauley-Stein on the court.
That's not to say Cauley-Stein's without his uses. Lately, his energy and rim-rolling prowess have charged up the Kings' scrappy second unit. He put up 14 points, five rebounds and four assists in a Feb. 8 win over the Boston Celtics.
"He's getting to balls that are outside of his area, and I think he's a lot more comfortable with our defensive schemes and also our offensive schemes where he can find seams to get to the rim."
In limited minutes as part of a unit with Anthony Tolliver, Matt Barnes, Ben McLemore and either Darren Collison or Ty Lawson, Cauley-Stein has solidified himself as a rotation player with upside. That's good timing by him, as Cousins figures to miss a few games before season's end, which will free up minutes in the middle.
Return of the Mac
Does it count as a return if Ben McLemore's viability as an NBA player was never really certain in the first place?
Rather than worry about the details, check this out: McLemore is tearing it up since regaining a role after six consecutive DNPs.
In February, he's averaging 13.3 points per game and hitting 50 percent of his threes. His 22 points and 6-of-10 effort from long distance were vital in Friday's win over Atlanta.
"He's always been a good shooter to me, it was just a matter of time for him to really turn the corner," Darren Collison said. "One thing about Ben, even when he wasn't playing, he was always in the gym. First one in the gym, last one to leave."
Cousins, as you'd expect, was more forthright: "Ben is like a little brother to me. It's bigger than basketball, just to see him remain positive, remain professional through the bulls--t and things not going his way ... I think he's hitting his stride. I think that good karma's coming around for him now."
Digging Holes and Microcosms
It's fitting the Kings are scrambling to make up ground in the West after an uninspiring first half of the season (or 50-plus games, as the case may be). Because that seems to be the way they operate.
Here's proof:
Kings False Starts Quarter Offensive Rating Defensive Rating Net Rating First 100.7 111.9 -11.3 Second 103.5 111.4 -7.9 Third 108.8 104.9 +3.9 Fourth 108.9 105.9 +3.0 NBA.com
On the one hand, failing to show up for games before halftime is a concern. But, on the other, the Kings have been forced to develop resiliency.
"Our fight and our heart is undeniable," Cousins said. "I believe everybody here can agree with me on that. That being said, we can't keep putting ourselves in that position. We gotta make these games easier for ourselves."
Not getting blasted in every first quarter (the Kings lost all three opening periods in their three-game winning streak) would be a good start.
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All quotes obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Stats via NBA.com and accurate through games played Feb. 14.
Special thanks to Shock Doctor for facilitating our interview with Cousins. Cousins uses Shock Doctor's mouth guards in every game, and team-branded products are soon to be released.