No. 5: DeMarcus Cousins
2017-2018 per game stats: 25.2 PTS, 12.9 REB, 5.4 AST
Call him a ring chaser if you’d like, but labels like that one don’t discount the impact that DeMarcus Cousins has made across the league in recent years.
Not only is Cousins one of the most offensively-gifted bigs in the game today, but he’s continued to show that he’s a team player who works well with elite talent — which is important when thinking about his pairing with another max-level player on the LA Clippers.
In New Orleans, Cousins played alongside Anthony Davis and Jrue Holiday, two elite players that many assumed would ultimately hurt Boogie’s numbers. However, it was the opposite that became the reality — Cousins’ numbers improved, as did Holiday’s, as did Davis’.
Cousins is adapting to the modern era better than most would have anticipated as well. Last season, the 6-11, 270 pound center splashed 35 percent of his 6.1 attempts from three-point range.
The only concern with Cousins is his recovery. This past January, Cousins ruptured his achilles late in a game against the Houston Rockets. The injury forced the usually-healthy big to miss the remainder of the season, before he ultimately signed with the Golden State Warriors this summer.
Plenty of executive eyes will be on Cousins and the Warriors this season. If he recovers properly and looks like his old self, he should be set to receiver multiple offers next summer. However, if the four-time All-Star looked hampered, the LA Clippers may want to look elsewhere for Marcin Gortat‘s eventual replacement.