Cousins Back for Team USA

Glenn

Glenn

Hall of Famer
#61
#61
VF21 said:
You could not possibly be further from the truth, if I"m reading your comment correctly.

If DMC continues to be spurned in his attempts to break into the upper echelons of NBA activity, it will not be pleasant for anyone. He is a warrior - a competitor who knows he has an incredible talent and wants to match that talent with others at the same level.
Click to expand...
I take it you mean it will not be pleasant for the opposition. I personally think there is almost nothing better than watching Cuz in all out beast mode. Whether he makes it or not, he's ours and I like that very much. I just think he has been criticized so much and worked so hard to satisfy his detractors that a certain amount of fairness would reward him. Does Colangelo give a crap about rewarding his efforts?

The future bigs in the next decade can be a part of this team. Boogie should be one of them. Have a team with continuity and I believe Colangelo has said that this factor is important.
 
D

dude12

Hall of Famer
#62
#62
Glenn said:
Depends on how the team is structured, doesn't it? This USA team has great outside shooting and probably doesn't seem to need a guy who can play smash mouth, in the post, offensive basketball. Maybe they don't think they need a big who can hit from the outside. I think that's a mistake, personally, as I think it's always good to have a reliable guy in the middle in case of a bad game from the outside shooters.

Why not have a guy who can put the Gasol brothers in foul trouble? That guy is not Drummond.

I have a feeling I am going to be very irked.
Click to expand...
I just have a feeling Colangelo is not going to go with Cuz. I think Cousins' best chance is to behave but compete like he always does and have Vivek somehow go to bat for Cuz, if that's even possible.

This is actually the time to try Cuz...in a non-Olympic year. Cuz is better than Drummond and Davis.....just is, imagine what he can do surrounded by the other talent. He's a load as is.
 
VF21

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
#63
#63
Glenn said:
Depends on how the team is structured, doesn't it? This USA team has great outside shooting and probably doesn't seem to need a guy who can play smash mouth, in the post, offensive basketball. Maybe they don't think they need a big who can hit from the outside. I think that's a mistake, personally, as I think it's always good to have a reliable guy in the middle in case of a bad game from the outside shooters.

Why not have a guy who can put the Gasol brothers in foul trouble? That guy is not Drummond.

I have a feeling I am going to be very irked.
Click to expand...
Come back to the light side of the force, Obi Wan. ;)

I don't think you'll be irked. I think it's pretty obvious that Demarcus is being showcased as a success story - the tale of a feisty kid who matured into an incredible NBA talent. His story is good for the image of the sport. I have no doubts whatsoever that he'll be on the team.

Come on. Join the optimist bandwagon. :p
 
VF21

VF21

Super Moderator Emeritus
SME
#64
#64
Glenn said:
I take it you mean it will not be pleasant for the opposition...
Click to expand...
Not exactly. You need to take the whole sentence for the proper context. IF DMC continues to be snubbed, it will eventually IMHO get to the point where it is unpleasant for everyone. I don't think it will happen, because I do not think he is going to be cut from TEAM USA and if he continues as he did this past season I do not think he will continue to be overlooked for All-NBA honors. But if he does, at some point he's going to say "**** it" ...
 
Uncia03

Uncia03

Starter
#65
#65
dude12 said:
I just have a feeling Colangelo is not going to go with Cuz. I think Cousins' best chance is to behave but compete like he always does and have Vivek somehow go to bat for Cuz, if that's even possible.

This is actually the time to try Cuz...in a non-Olympic year. Cuz is better than Drummond and Davis.....just is, imagine what he can do surrounded by the other talent. He's a load as is.
Click to expand...
I disagree with this assessment.
You're basically saying that Colangelo would go with a 3 big man rotation of Anthony Davis, Andre Drummond, & Kenneth Faried before he'd consider putting Cousins on the 12-man roster, even when it's clear that Cousins is the most dominant Big left on the roster.
If he really believed that there was pretty much no chance that Cousins would not make the 12-man roster (even if players like Griffin and Love pulled out) he wouldn't have invited Cousins back to join the 19-man roster. There was nothing forcing him to extend that invitation to Cousins.
It's fine to 'have a feeling' that Cousins might not make it in order to not be upset if he doesn't make it. But at this point, Cousins not making the team makes no sense at all.
 
LPKingsFan

LPKingsFan

All-Star
#67
#67
dude12 said:
Someone asked Colangelo about Drummond's chances now and he basically said he was almost a lock as he brings what we are looking for in defense , rebounding and blocking shots and has a great attitude....but we will see what he has learned over the last year. Cuz is going to get screwed.
Click to expand...
Not necessarily. As I posted before, last time around the "bigs" were Love, Chandler, and Davis, with LeBron, Durant, and Melo often playing smallball PF. Love and Chander are now out. I understand them picking Drummond to replace Chandler, but who replaces Love? Faried gives you rebounding, but nothing else. Cousins is not the perimeter shooter that Love is, but generally he fits Love's role of "skilled" big much better than the alternatives. Sure, there's talk of another perimeter guy such as Parsons, but Parsons is not going to cause trouble for the Gasols like Cousins would.

Edit: just saw the Millsap add. That... could be more troubling. Obviously not the player Cousins is, but if they really want someone closer to the "Love" role, could be him.
 
Bricklayer

Bricklayer

Don't Make Me Use The Bat
#68
#68
Yep, Milsap is a good add strategically by the NT, but really there is no way that should impact CUz. It may in fact of course, but this year, with that crew, if Cuz is left out there is no question, no excuse, its bias. He's one of two legit remaining frontcourt stars on the roster. Those two should be guaranteed. If one of them is not, then somebody flat doesn't like them because it won't make basketball sense.
 
Uncia03

Uncia03

Starter
#76
#76
It's interesting that a third of the notes from USA Camp involved Cousins.

http://hangtime.blogs.nba.com/2014/07/28/usa-camp-day-1-notes/?ls=iref:nbahpts

Here are the notes involving Cousins:

In a few lineups, we saw Faried and Cousins playing together. And yes, they controlled the glass.
Click to expand...
It’s weird to imagine Cousins representing the U.S. in a hostile, international environment, but seeing him in this environment, you can see how he could make an impact.
Click to expand...
Defensively, with FIBA rules, Cousins can hang close to the basket and defend the rim. In the few minutes we saw him on Monday, he blocked or altered at least three shots
Click to expand...
He’s a beast, and there aren’t many players in the world that can match up with him, especially if he just plays off others as a roll man and finisher in the paint.
Click to expand...
Still, there will remain a fear that Cousins will lose his cool with international officiating or decide, in a big moment, to dribble the ball up the floor himself. If he wants to make the team, he has to prove that he can stay disciplined in more ways than one.
Click to expand...
I bolded the last two, as I think they are the most important. It should be clear that no-one can match what Cousins can do. All he has to do is prove over the course of the next few months that he can control himself. If he does and goes on to be a factor in a USA Championship team...the entire narrative on him changes next year.
I am looking forward to it.
 
jcwkings

jcwkings

All-Star
#80
#80
This is HUGE for Cousins, if he can make the team it will be great for him mentally more than anything. We have seen a lot of young guy take the Team USA experience to launch them to the next level. Being around all the other superstars shows you what it truly takes mentally to be an elite player. Cousins has the talent, competitive spirit to be elite, just needs to take the final step, and that is all between the ears.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.