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Sacramento Kings: Temper The Only Thing Holding DeMarcus Cousins Back

By Greg Chin

April 5, 2015; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins (15) reacts during the third quarter against the Utah Jazz at Sleep Train Arena. The Jazz defeated the Kings 101-95. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
April 5, 2015; Sacramento, CA, USA; Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins (15) reacts during the third quarter against the Utah Jazz at Sleep Train Arena. The Jazz defeated the Kings 101-95. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports /
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The Sacramento Kings kicked off the 2014-15 season to an impressive start. The team was outperforming expectations under head coach Michael Malone, and found themselves with a 9-5 record after 14 games. DeMarcus Cousins was playing the best basketball of his career after spending the summer with Team USA, and looked like a legitimate top-5 center in the NBA.

However, after Boogie went down with a viral infection, the team struggled to string together wins. The poor string of performances eventually led to Malone losing his job – a surprising decision considering his ties to Cousins and the impressive start the Kings had.

Since then, the team hasn’t had much to cheer about. The poor results continued under interim coach Ty Corbin, and Cousins seemed to regress under Corbin’s watch. This wasn’t to say that Cousins’ performances were poor, but some of the maturity issues that seemed to be gone under Malone reared their ugly head with Corbin.

Cousins has always had a bad reputation when it came to his maturity. There are countless GIFs and YouTube videos of Cousins mouthing off at referees and earning unnecessary technical fouls – so much so that it is now an ingrained part of Cousins’ game. But, for the most part this season, Cousins has been better when it comes to maintaining his composure with the referees.

After imposing a five technical foul limit on himself before the season season started, Cousins was determined to change his on-court demeanour. He recorded 16 technical fouls last season, and has never had less than 12 in a year before. With six games left to play, Cousins has 14 techs this season. He may not have met his goal, but there has definitely been some improvement on his part this season.

Reggie Evans' Instagram post on DeMarcus Cousins' technical foul limit
Reggie Evans’ Instagram post on DeMarcus Cousins’ technical foul limit /

Cousins has been one of the few Kings’ bright spots this season. Averaging 24.1 points, 12.7 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game, Cousins is a lock for one of the All-NBA team spots. Under new head coach George Karl, he is finishing the season strongly, and has been posting several 20-20 games recently.

The Kings are still trying to find ways to win those games, and it is clear that the Kings have a superstar in Cousins. The league has been bereft of dominant big men in recent times, but if Cousins can continue on this path, he could be the next dominant center in the league. However, if there’s one thing that is limiting his growth, it’s his maturity and temper.

As one of the best threats the Kings have on the court, it is imperative that Cousins is able to remain on the court for as long as he can. But, by averaging 4.1 personal fouls per game, Cousins is limiting his own court time. He has 24 games with five or more fouls this season – an unacceptable amount for a game-changer like Cousins. He has to learn to control his temper and avoid fouling out.

The good news is that coach Karl is having a positive effect on Cousins’ fouling – since Karl became coach, Cousins has only had more than five fouls in seven of a possible 19 games played.

Most of the fouls Cousins receives are due to his frustration boiling over. Cousins and his teammates have often complained about the rough treatment he receives on the offensive end, and many neutral parties would agree with this observation. Cousins already has a poor reputation with the referees — arguing with them while committing silly frustration fouls is not going to help win them over.

Cousins has the makings of a great center. The last truly elite center the NBA had was Dwight Howard, and his athletic prime was cut down by injuries. In a league where the physically dominating center is a dying breed, Cousins could be the last one of his kind if he manages to improve his maturity and temper on the court.

Next: The 30 Best Centers of All-Time

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