The DeMarcus Cousins circus continues. Rumors continue to swirl less than 24 hours after the #WojBomb stating that Sacramento Kings head coach George Karl has an "intense desire" to trade the 24-year-old All-Star. With just about 48 hours until the 2015 NBA Draft, the rumors figure to only increase.
2015 NBA Draft rumors: DeMarcus Cousins trade rumors continue to swirl
Plus, the Sixers are in on D’Angelo Russell while the Knicks are looking at Kristaps Porzingis.
The Boston Celtics, Los Angeles Lakers, New York Knicks and Denver Nuggets are currently the teams being tied to Cousins rumors. The Celtics "have long had their eye on the Sacramento situation," reports CBS Sports' Ken Berger and no one can offer the Kings as much as Boston. Danny Ainge has two first-round picks this year -- Nos. 16 and 28 -- and possibly six more in the next three drafts (depending on how the various pick protections play out) to dangle in front of Sacramento. If the Kings are looking to tear the entire roster down and rebuild, the Celtics are the team they should call.
Of course, all indications are that Karl has no interest in overseeing a rebuild. "He is chasing Don Nelson on the career wins list and wants to win now with veteran players," writes Berger, who adds that Karl is "enamored" with the idea of trading Cousins to his former employer for Ty Lawson, Kenneth Faried and Wilson Chandler, AKA the 2013 Denver Nuggets. The Kings, however, have yet to propose such a deal, according to Berger.
The Knicks and Lakers are also interested in Cousins, but for various reasons are unlikely to land him. Writes Berger:
Cousins' agent, Dan Fegan, would like to steer his client to the Lakers, who can offer Julius Randle and this year's No. 2 pick -- though rival teams doubt the Kings would send Cousins to a division rival. The Knicks are another team on Cousins' list, but all the Knicks have to offer is the fourth pick (which, bear in mind, can't officially be dealt until the Knicks use it, since their 2016 first-rounder already has been traded).
And while Karl’s bosses (Kings owner Vivek Ranadive and vice president Vlade Divac) have thus far claimed that they are opposed to dealing Cousins, the two seem to have no such qualms about the rest of the roster.
“They have everyone on the table,” a league executive told Berger.
The 2015 NBA Draft takes place Thursday night. The next two days are going to be wild and Cousins figures to be a big part of the action.
The Sixers want D’Angelo Russell
It's been a rough offseason for the Philadelphia 76ers. Joel Embiid reportedly suffered a setback in his recovery from the foot injury that forced him to miss his entire rookie season, while Croatian forward Dario Saric -- last year's No. 12 selection -- has elected to pass on coming to Philadelphia and will instead stay in Turkey for at least another season.
Will these developments change the Sixers’ draft strategy Thursday night? Perhaps, as the team is now targeting Ohio State point guard D’Angelo Russell, according to Berger.
League sources say the Sixers want D'Angelo Russell and are willing to trade up from the No. 3 spot to get him. It would create an interesting opportunity for the Lakers, who could still get Jahlil Okafor and extract a future pick in the process. Among others, the Sixers control the Lakers' 2016 first-round pick, which is top-3 protected.
A week ago, there were rumors that Philadelphia was “extremely high” on Kristaps Porzingis. Either there is some smoke-screening action going on here or Sam Hinkie has finally decided to, you know, stop targeting guys who might help in the future and instead will start drafting players who are actually ready to contribute right away.
Speaking of Porzingis ...
Kristaps Porzingis looks to be headed to New York
At least that's how Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix sees it. He wrote, "Porzingis has a lot of support amongst Knicks execs." New York holds the No. 4 pick in the draft. The interesting part here is that New York doesn't seem to be where Porzingis wants to end up. The Orlando Magic -- who hold the No. 5 pick -- is where he'd like to land, according to Mannix, who adds that the Magic "covet Porzingis."
The problem is it doesn't look like Porzingis will make it to Orlando. The Cousins development changes everything, but right now it seems as if Karl-Anthony Towns will be going No. 1 to the Minnesota Timberwolves, with Okafor going No. 2 to the Lakers and Russell going No. 3 to the Sixers. If that's how Thursday night plays out, it's going to be really hard for the Knicks to pass on a talent like Porzingis.
The Sixers turned down a Celtics offer that included Marcus Smart
It’s no secret that Boston is looking to trade up. The Celtics have a desire to get a superstar and, as mentioned above, the assets a team needs to acquire one. Boston is expected to be in on Cousins, but Ainge isn’t putting all his eggs in one basket.
Boston offered Philadelphia a package of Marcus Smart as well as the Nos. 16 and 28 picks in exchange for Nerlens Noel and the No. 3 pick, according to Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times. The Sixers rejected the offer.
This tells us two things: One, Philadelphia again might actually be trying to make a real draft pick this year, which would be nice. It also shows us just how desperate Ainge is to move up. The Celtics love Smart and yet, according to this report, had no problem offering him up. That means everyone is on the table for Boston. The next two days are going to be a lot of fun.
SB Nation presents: The 3-pointer has gone from novelty to necessary
See More:
