One AND ONLY Cousins trade rumors thread

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"Asked specifically if coach George Karl has pushed to trade Cousins, Divac replied, “No. We have talked about how we can improve the team, but not discussed anything specifically with (Cousins) even though teams are calling us. I will not be in a position to be pushed around. I don’t know why we are wasting time talking about something that is not going to happen.”

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/ailene-voisin/article25347820.html#storylink=cpy

For whatever reason, Vlade is one of the few, maybe the ONLY one, I believe.
Tell 'em, Vlade!
 

funkykingston

Super Moderator
Staff member
So here's what I don't get right now.

Sure, Cousins is unhappy, but isn't he locked up for two more years before hitting free agency?
Yes, but Cousins is equally capable of destroying opposing frontlines as destroying team morale and his own trade value. DeMarcus Cousins has an undeniable competitive fire but as much as I love the kid he's also fully likely to be completely unprofessional to get his point across. Forcing him to play for the Kings if he's really made his mind up that he wants out does no one any favors. At worst (best?) Karl will get Sprewell'd. But at the very least I'd be prepared for a lot more things like this in the coming season:


Despite the video title and the comments of the announcers, that wasn't Boogie falling asleep on defense or losing track of his man. That was DeMarcus Cousins making some sort of a point because he was unhappy. And he seems VERY unhappy now.

Going into the season with Cousins wanting out is a BAD plan. Something needs to happen to smooth things over if that's possible now.
 
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Bricklayer

Don't Make Me Use The Bat
"Asked specifically if coach George Karl has pushed to trade Cousins, Divac replied, “No. We have talked about how we can improve the team, but not discussed anything specifically with (Cousins) even though teams are calling us. I will not be in a position to be pushed around. I don’t know why we are wasting time talking about something that is not going to happen.”

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/ailene-voisin/article25347820.html#storylink=cpy

For whatever reason, Vlade is one of the few, maybe the ONLY one, I believe.
Vlade for President!
 

bajaden

Hall of Famer
At some point, we have to take someone's word. Vlade has come out and said that Cousins isn't going anywhere. That part, until I have a reason to believe otherwise, is good enough for me. Vlade also said that Karl isn't pushing to trade Cousins. I believe that to the best of his ability, Vlade is telling the truth. Of course no one knows for sure what is going on inside the head of George Karl, but if Vlade doesn't know of any grand conspiracy by Karl to garner support within the organization, then I believe Vlade. Is it possible that at some point in time, Karl entertained the idea if trading Cousins? I'd say yes. But it could be old news that's being conveniently used now as fuel for the fire.

If Karl was working the phones around the league trying to drum up a deal to trade Cousins, don't you think one of those teams would pick up the phone and give Vlade a call. Does anyone really think that all this was going on without Vlade knowing about it? So it comes down to whether you trust Vlade or not. Hopefully, it will also come down to whether Cuz trusts Vlade or not. I know some are quick to say we should fire Karl, but is that likely to happen? The Kings are still eating the contract of Malone. Do you think their going to eat the 11 million owed Karl? My guess is that they try and weather the storm. Hopefully show Cousins that they're improving the team during the summer, and then let things play out at training camp.

I have no doubt that it will be somewhat uncomfortable, but both Karl and Cousins wear big boy pants, and if they can agree to work together regardless of personal feelings, and the Kings start winning, a lot of ill's will be cured. Cousins is a player that will do what it takes if he's committed. He's not one to dog it because he's unhappy. An apology, if necessary, or an explanation by Karl along with a handshake would be a good start.
 
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Kingster

Hall of Famer
"Asked specifically if coach George Karl has pushed to trade Cousins, Divac replied, “No. We have talked about how we can improve the team, but not discussed anything specifically with (Cousins) even though teams are calling us. I will not be in a position to be pushed around. I don’t know why we are wasting time talking about something that is not going to happen.”

So does that mean they've talked generally about trading Cousins?

I didn't read in that statement: Karl does not want to trade Cousins.
 

Kingster

Hall of Famer
At some point, we have to take someone's word. Vlade has come out and said that Cousins isn't going anywhere. That part, until I have a reason to believe otherwise, is good enough for me. Vlade also said that Karl isn't pushing to trade Cousins. I believe that to the best of his ability, Vlade is telling the truth. Of course no one knows for sure what is going on inside the head of George Karl, but if Vlade doesn't know of any grand conspiracy by Karl to garner support within the organization, then I believe Vlade. Is it possible that at some point in time, Karl entertained the idea if trading Cousins? I'd say yes. But it could be old news that's being conveniently used now as fuel for the fire.

If Karl was working the phones around the league trying to drum up a deal to trade Cousins, don't you think one of those teams would pick up the phone and give Vlade a call. Does anyone really think that all this was going on without Vlade knowing about it? So it comes down to whether you trust Vlade or not. Hopefully, it will also come down to whether Cuz trusts Vlade or not. I know some are quick to say we should fire Karl, but is that likely to happen? The Kings are still eating the contract of Malone. Do you think their going to eat the 11 million owed Karl? My guess is that they try and weather the storm. Hopefully show Cousins that they're improving the team during the summer, and then let things play out at training camp.

I have no doubt that it will be somewhat uncomfortable, but both Karl and Cousins wear big boy pants, and if they can agree to work together regardless of personal feelings, and the Kings start winning, a lot of ill's will be cured. Cousins is a player that will do what it takes if he's committed. He's not one to dog it because he's unhappy. An apology, or an explanation by Karl along with a handshake would be a good start.
EXACTLY. A Kings player isn't going to tell Vlade about Karl's advocacy? An agent isn't going to call Vlade in response to a Karl inquiry? A GM isn't going to contact Vlade after hearing about Karl's inquiries? Of course, of course of course. IF IT DID HAPPEN, Vlade would know.
 
It was a good will gesture, nothing more. There was no way PDA was going to be around this season. It was find a new job and leave with a tiny bastion of dignity or we'll can you. I can't prove that obviously, but it should be pretty obvious to anyone that followed the Kings last year.
Exactly. That is how you work if you're both a change agent and a peacemaker. It was as respectful a firing as he could have delivered, and shrewd as well because it kept Pete's talents engaged (to some extent at least) while he job hunted.
 
Tony Ray Harvey ‏@EastCentral_ILL 26m
Vlade Divac at G1C today: "We have a good coach and good player. Let's work together." @SactoKingsFan @ESPN1320

Tony Ray Harvey ‏@EastCentral_ILL 18m
Vlade on DeMarcus: "Right now he's in Mexico.That's a good place for him to stay away from this turmoil created by somebody." @ESPN1320

Tony Ray Harvey ‏@EastCentral_ILL 14m
Vlade Divac: Right now, there's a lot of pressure on me. I'm in charge to make good decisions & I have intentions to do that.@ESPN1320

Tony Ray Harvey ‏@EastCentral_ILL 10m
Vlade Divac: "Let me do my job & we'll see u in a month or so to talk about beautiful stuff. Something that's going to be historic."
 
Tony Ray Harvey ‏@EastCentral_ILL 26m
Vlade Divac at G1C today: "We have a good coach and good player. Let's work together." @SactoKingsFan @ESPN1320

Tony Ray Harvey ‏@EastCentral_ILL 18m
Vlade on DeMarcus: "Right now he's in Mexico.That's a good place for him to stay away from this turmoil created by somebody." @ESPN1320

Tony Ray Harvey ‏@EastCentral_ILL 14m
Vlade Divac: Right now, there's a lot of pressure on me. I'm in charge to make good decisions & I have intentions to do that.@ESPN1320

Tony Ray Harvey ‏@EastCentral_ILL 10m
Vlade Divac: "Let me do my job & we'll see u in a month or so to talk about beautiful stuff. Something that's going to be historic."
I like the sound of every line there. That's leadership.
 

Capt. Factorial

trifolium contra tempestatem subrigere certum est
Staff member
Tony Ray Harvey ‏@EastCentral_ILL 10m
Vlade Divac: "Let me do my job & we'll see u in a month or so to talk about beautiful stuff. Something that's going to be historic."
It's easy to believe him. He has managed to become perhaps the single non-polarizing figure among Kings fans, and quickly. I sure hope my faith in him is well placed.
 

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
If Karl isn't lobbying for Cuz to get traded, that reinforces the notion that this is all coming from Cuz's camp in order to get him out of Sac. That seems worse to me than if it were Karl lobbying for a trade, since in that case, maybe you could maybe tell Karl to STFU or fire him. But if Karl isn't doing any of these things, and Cuz is using him as a means to demand a trade... not good.

Again, I'm just hoping we can get Cuz to buy in till the break to see if we can turn things around quickly. Then promise that if he still wants out, you'll accomodate him.
Not ALL coming from Fegan. You can smell the stench of weasel (PDA) all over it, too.
 
Vlade is the man. Acting how a GM should be with "No, THIS is how things are going to go," type of comments. He's taking command of this team, which is exactly how it should be
It was extremely important for him to assert his authority. Agents are like sharks; they smell blood and you're done. They see a first-year executive and immediately pounce at stealing his greatest prize, but as long as Vlade stands tall and resists being pushed around, they can't manipulate him the way they want.
 
vlade is displaying exceptional leadership, which is to be expected, given what we know about his days as a player. color me impressed with his media response during a particularly brutal 24-hour news cycle. only a few months into his tenure in the kings front office, he's faced with a very difficult situation that threatens to become untenable if cooler heads are unable to prevail, and he's handling it with aplomb. who knows how much it will mean in the end, but it's certainly reassuring at a time when kings fans are preparing for the worst...
 
What gives me the most confidence in Divac is that he will not be pushed around or get starry eyed around billionares and become a yes man(PDA). He has his own list of accomplishments and is not afraid to assert his authority. Until he messes up hes the only one in that FO I trust. So far he is handling todays storm better than anything PDA handled in his 2 years here.
 
vlade is displaying exceptional leadership, which is to be expected, given what we know about his days as a player. color me impressed with his media response during a particularly brutal 24-hour news cycle. only a few months into his tenure in the kings front office, he's faced with a very difficult situation that threatens to become untenable if cooler heads are unable to prevail, and he's handling it with aplomb. who knows how much it will mean in the end, but it's certainly reassuring at a time when kings fans are preparing for the worst...
Getting out ahead of this was incredibly important too. I'm not so sure the old regime has a response ready in 12 hours after all the hoopla last night. But letting this thing fester would have been one of the ways for this situation to become a major problem and probably lead to exactly what the rumors were suggesting. Slamming it down and debunking everything is the best way for the team to move past this. In an ideal world, we get Karl saying he's behind Cuz 100% too and we can move on.
 
The thing I see as an advantage if the Lakers are in play is that we have two years on DMC's contract and the laker fan base is so impatient and fair weather that management there likely can't afford to wait for DMC's free agency.
 

Kingster

Hall of Famer
Vlade Divac: "Let me do my job & we'll see u in a month or so to talk about beautiful stuff. Something that's going to be historic."

I'll say this about Divac, he sets the bar extremely high. He must have some very big stuff in the works to make a statement like that.
 

Bricklayer

Don't Make Me Use The Bat
Tony Ray Harvey ‏@EastCentral_ILL 26m
Vlade Divac at G1C today: "We have a good coach and good player. Let's work together." @SactoKingsFan @ESPN1320

Tony Ray Harvey ‏@EastCentral_ILL 18m
Vlade on DeMarcus: "Right now he's in Mexico.That's a good place for him to stay away from this turmoil created by somebody." @ESPN1320

Tony Ray Harvey ‏@EastCentral_ILL 14m
Vlade Divac: Right now, there's a lot of pressure on me. I'm in charge to make good decisions & I have intentions to do that.@ESPN1320

Tony Ray Harvey ‏@EastCentral_ILL 10m
Vlade Divac: "Let me do my job & we'll see u in a month or so to talk about beautiful stuff. Something that's going to be historic."
 

Kingster

Hall of Famer
Not ALL coming from Fegan. You can smell the stench of weasel (PDA) all over it, too.
If even some of this is coming from Fegan, then this has been brewing for a loooong time. It's one thing to have a flare up with a coach during the course of a season. It's an entirely different thing when you've had months in the offseason to heal from perceived wounds, fishing in Cabo no less, and then demand a trade. That speaks to something much deeper and more entrenched.
 

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
If even some of this is coming from Fegan, then this has been brewing for a loooong time. It's one thing to have a flare up with a coach during the course of a season. It's an entirely different thing when you've had months in the offseason to heal from perceived wounds, fishing in Cabo no less, and then demand a trade. That speaks to something much deeper and more entrenched.
It has been widely reported that Cousins' trade demand was made while PDA was still GM. The fact it was leaked NOW, when PDA is no longer tied to the organization, is one of the reasons it has such a stench of weasel to it.
 
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