If Cousins wanted out he would have been gone by now. He didn't have to agree to an extension, but he did. He didn't have to say that he wants to turn Sacramento around, but he did. Despite the consistent Maloofery, he decided to stick it out.
That said, I don't think we've done enough to build a winner around DFC. I think we've made positive strides in that direction, but there are several things that we are dependent upon:
1. The continued cohesion between Cousins and Gay.
If they work a good 1-2 game, then that will go a long way. If they ever have to fight over the ball, then all bets are off. History shows, however, that Gay is fine being a #2 option, and will succeed in that role, so I don't see this as an issue.
2. Bringing in the right players through trade/FA.
I think this has been pretty inconsistent, but I give the FO kudos for at least trying to shuffle things around until they fit. So far, it seems like we're getting lower-level versions of the types of players we're looking for, and geez, is anyone still defending the Landry move? That said, at least they're trying...
3. The rookies/youth developing.
That's the sticky wicket, isn't it? If Stauskas becomes what he could be by next year (if not sooner), McLemore doesn't suck, and Moreland becomes a viable option sooner rather than later, then we've added good pieces around Cousins. Pie in the sky would be a backcourt of Stauskas/McLemore (which theoretically could happen), and Moreland would be like Evans with better defense. Yes, I know that's best case scenario, but that's kind of what we need at this point, right?
If we hit a home run on all three, then I think this is a non-issue. Cousins doesn't seem to want a bigger market, and Kevin Durant has proven that it isn't necessary. If we miss out on issue #1, I think we can salvage it somewhat through #2, but then we're taking a step back unless we absolutely get it right. #3 to me is the biggest concern, as these players need to be hitting their peak near the end of Cousins's contract. If they do, we're winning games, and he's not going anywhere. If not, it's either because they've been traded away for better (fitting) players, which goes back to #2. I'd like to get to a cycle where our kids aren't being relied upon from the start, and we can just plug them in later because we have the luxury to do so, but we're not there yet. Fair or not, there's a lot of pressure on them right now.