The Los Angeles Lakers are not entirely crossing DeMarcus Cousins out of the equation. Although they waived him to make room for Markieff Morris, it appears Boogie could still be in play this summer unless some other team ends up courting the temperamental big man.
According to Joe Vardon of The Athletic, the Lakers and Cousins have a mutual interest in re-signing Cousins in the summer. However, things will be toned down a bit moving forward. Cousins will no longer be seen on the Lakers bench nor fly with them to their games. However, he will still be allowed to continue his rehab at the Lakers practice facility, the only thing he can do for the rest of the current NBA season.
“DeMarcus has been here rehabbing and been a great member of this team behind the scenes that nobody gets to see because the only thing he can do is be a good teammate and travel, and show up to every game and have a good attitude,” said teammate Alex Caruso. And he’s done that and been one of the best teammates as far as just keeping everybody’s energy high and not too low.”
There were questions in the air on whether Cousins could return this NBA season. However, it would have likely been a rush return, something the all-star center may want to reconsider. The truth is that he has been getting re-injured frequently, meaning his body could be telling him to take it easy. With a longer time away from the court, it could also be his ticket to stay longer once he is medically cleared.
If healthy, there is no doubt that Cousins is a monster inside the paint. The bad news for him right now is that he needs to painfully work his way back to form. Tied up to that is the kind of contract coming his way. With the spate of injuries he has endured, he will have to settle for short-term deals and figures not necessarily in the vicinity of max-contract offers.
Several teams could look into Cousins in the summer. That would include the Dallas Mavericks, a team that expressed interest in him back in 2018. The Lakers will likely revisit him once the current season is over. With his close ties to Anthony Davis and Rajon Rondo, the chances of Cousins playing with the Lakers remain high. All he has to do is prove that he is healthy and ready to go.
