Is DeMarcus Cousins A Legitimate MVP Candidate?
By Evan Massey
Is Sacramento Kings’ big man DeMarcus Cousins a legitimate candidate for the NBA’s MVP award?
The Sacramento Kings may not be one of the teams that many had pegged as potential contenders in the Western Conference, but they have jumped out to a quick 5-1 start this season. DeMarcus Cousins has been playing at a very high level, and some have begun questioning whether or not he will be a candidate for the MVP award at the end of the season.
So without further ado, can Cousins be a legitimate MVP candidate throughout the 2014-15 NBA season?
Take a look at DeMarcus Cousins’ statistics throughout the Kings’ first six regular season games:
Provided by Basketball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 11/9/2014.
Perhaps the most impressive part of the numbers that Cousins has been putting up this season, is that he has had that production in just 29.8 minutes per game.
There is no question that those numbers are good enough to be in consideration for the MVP award, and he definitely has the talent to keep them up throughout the entire season. Sacramento has made it very obvious that Cousins is their number one offensive option, and then Rudy Gay is the second scorer to help take pressure off of Cousins.
Keeping up the type of production that he has had so far this season isn’t going to be easy for Cousins, but the Kings are going to keep giving him the same amount of touches each game. He has truly transformed himself into one of the most dangerous scoring options in the league, and there aren’t many opposing centers that can defend against him in the post especially. Cousins could improve his mid-range game a bit, but that will come with more work and experience.
At just 24 years of age, the potential for Cousins to reach is nearly limitless. He still has plenty of room to grow offensively, and his defensive ability could use some work as well. Both of those areas are already improved from the last couple of seasons, but there is still potential growth if he chose to work hard on those areas.
It’ going to be very difficult for Cousins to edge out players like LeBron James, Anthony Davis, and the usual MVP candidates. He is going to have to continue leading his Kings to a good record, and will need to continue putting up big numbers individually as well. There is no question that Cousins and the Kings have the potential to do those things, but it’s certainly not going to be easy.
DeMarcus Cousins is one of the most talented big men that the NBA has had for quite some time, and could end up being the best center in the league in the next couple of years. Can he shock the league and win the MVP award this season? There is no question that the MVP award is a possibility if he continues playing like he has and the team continues winning games.
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Sacramento hasn’t had this type of talent on their roster since back when they had Chris Webber and company, and the future looks extremely bright with Cousins leading the way. They might very well have a legitimate MVP caliber center as their franchise player, and they have a lot of talented young players surrounding him.
That being said, there is no question that Cousins is a legitimate MVP candidate and will be in the conversation at the end of the year. He has a long, difficult road ahead of him, but he has shown that he can rise above much bigger things in the past. Cousins has a ton of potential left to pursue, and he will continue to grow and improve as a player even more this season as he continues to be the go-to player.
Expect to see DeMarcus Cousins very much in the conversation for the MVP award at the end of the season when everything is said and done.