NBA players were stunned by the Warriors' free-agency surprise: 'What are we doing here?'
The NBA went into a state of shock Monday night when the three-time and defending world champion Golden State Warriors signed four-time all-star center DeMarcus Cousins for, by NBA salary standards, relatively little.
Cousins signed a one-year deal with the Warriors for $5.3 million. Cousins is coming off a year where he was averaging 25.3 points per game and 12.9 rebounds per game before tearing his Achilles tendon in late January. The Pelicans went 27-21 with Cousins and 21-13 without him, not including a first-round playoff sweep of Portland in the Western Conference playoffs.
Pelicans brass came to the realization that they were just as good without Cousins. They picked up 6-foot-10 power forward Nikola Mirotic from the Bulls and he seemed to work well with superstar Anthony Davis.
Then, when the Lakers let power forward Julius Randle go Monday to make room to sign Rajon Rondo, the Pelicans signed Randle to a one-year $9 million deal that made Cousins expendable.
As a result, Cousins literally fell into the Warriors lap in a matter of hours Monday — it was even a shock to Golden State brass because Cousins wasn’t on their radar.
As Cousins told The Undefeated’s Marc Spears on Monday night, he had no offers. The Pelicans were out and other teams were concerned about his injury, the fit, or the high pricetag he would command. So he instructed his agent to inquire about the possibility of signing a mid-level exception deal with an elite team, reported Spears.
Cousins didn’t say which other teams were in the mix, but reports said that his agent reached out to Warriors and Celtics. The Warriors offered a mid-level exception of $5.3 million and Cousins took it.
“This was my ace of spades. This was my chess move,” Cousins told Spears.
It sent shock waves throughout the NBA.
WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE GUYS.!?? 🤔🤔😂😂😂😂
— JAE CROWDER (@CJC9BOSS) July 3, 2018
When Cousins returns from his Achilles injury in December or January, the Warriors will put five all-stars on the court — Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green, and Cousins.
“A winning culture and togetherness got us DeMarcus,” Durant told The Undefeated via text.
https://twitter.com/FSKPart3/status/1013946380266754048
“I looked at the alert on my phone and I didn’t believe it at first. And then all of the sudden I was getting a bunch of text messages about it,” Kings guard De’Aaron Fox told the Undefeated.
Mood: All around the League 🤦♂️ pic.twitter.com/ivPzSEGOI8
— Enes FREEDOM (@EnesFreedom) July 3, 2018
It left players like the Cavs Larry Nance Jr. and the Sixers Joel Embiid scratching their heads.
— Larry Nance (@Larrydn22) July 3, 2018
Well well the NBA is NUTS and also the best league lmao pic.twitter.com/zwtcgq9oZP
— Joel Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) July 3, 2018
The news not only shook the NBA, it moved the LeBron James signing with the Lakers Sunday off the front page.
What’s next for an already wild offseason? We’ll find out when we learn where Kwahi Leonard is headed next season.
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