All is not well for the Sacramento Kings, and DeMarcus Cousins, aka Boogie, aka DMC knows it.
Sure, they’re off to a 1-7 start, a troubling start to the season for obvious reasons. And yes, Cousins only just returned from an Achilles injury. But their issues stretch much deeper. That’s how Cousins made it seem following their 106-88 loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Monday night. He went as far as hinting at a players-only meeting, according to The Sacramento Bee‘s Jason Jones:
Cousins, who missed the previous four games with a strained right Achilles’ tendon, was asked if he learned anything about the team while injured.
“Everything I can’t really speak on,” Cousins said. “We got some issues that we got to carve out. Can’t really speak on that. But one thing is, us players, we got to stick together. And just with that, that’ll get us through most battles. We got some issues in-house we need to figure out.”
Cousins was asked if these were issues that could be fixed before the Kings host Detroit on Wednesday.
“Can’t answer that,” he said.
Are these on-court issues?
“Not at all,” Cousins said.
Cousins was asked if the Kings needed a players-only meeting.
“It’ll be a players-only meeting,” Cousins said. “… Just to make it clear I believe in every single person in this room. We just got to stay together. That part I’m not worried about. But there are issues we need to figure out.”
Well, well, well, look at Cousins going full-blown leader at a time when the Kings, losers of six in a row, need a steadying force to stop the bleeding.
Perhaps most of the league’s preeminent leaders wouldn’t be so direct with their concern. But they are known for calling out their teammates without actually calling out their teammates. And that’s what Cousins is doing here: citing the need for a players-only meeting while making it clear that he has not given up hope.
Silver linings are important at a time like this, and Cousins’ approach to the Kings’ current quagmire is certainly shining brighter than any other purported positive the team has to offer.
Still, when you peel back his emotional maturity, you’re still left with a Kings squad that, frankly, isn’t good enough. Maybe they’re underachieving to start the year, but that only means they’re better than a 1-7 unit, better than a bottom-five team. That does not mean they’re a playoff team, or even a fringe playoff team, or even a team capable of winning 30 games for the first time since 2007-08, long before Cousins made his NBA debut.
What the Kings need is better spacing. What they need is players who complement one another. And a closed-door meeting cannot change the roster, nor can it make the Kings something they’re not.
It can, however, help forge something resembling on-court and off-court unity. And that’s a start—to what we don’t know, but it’s a start.
