rainmaker
Hall of Famer
Since it's insider, I can't copy and paste thw whole thing. This is actually the first article from Thorpe, that has some merit to it. Here are a few paragraphs.
The next time you watch DeMarcus Cousins play, try analyzing him using just one word at a time. It's an exercise I do when evaluating players. Here's what I came up with when I watched him in person last Wednesday against Orlando: gigantic, lazy, gifted, infantile, physical, unafraid, vision, anticipation, lost, clueless, different, agile. My guess is you would come up with similar words after observing him.
Unlike many big men who enter the league, Cousins is already loaded with an NBA body and game. His talent jumps off the tape, stat sheets and court. Unfortunately, so do his flaws, especially the problem "between the ears." Every player I've spoken to this season told me Cousins has the worst body language and facial expressions of any NBA player they've ever seen. And I was able to see many of the same things when I watched him up close.
On Cousins' pregame routine:
He was doing the customary spot shooting drill, where a player has to make 10 shots from one spot before moving to the next spot. But when the drummers started in, Cousins immediately looked in their direction and began dancing -- not wildly or comedically, but still dancing. After a few seconds, he resumed his shooting, but he would frequently break back into a quick dance motion between shots. At one time he even paused his entire routine just to watch.
Most good players like Ray Allen and Shane Battier have a very rigid pregame routine, which starts the morning of the game and runs all the way to tipoff. These routines vary from pro to pro, but they are well-planned and scripted.
Cousins would greatly benefit from doing likewise (we'll get into this more later). He is the Kings' best talent, in my opinion, but he's not good enough to walk through his pregame work and still expect to single-handedly beat a good team
With over 10 minutes to play in the third quarter in a tie game, Cousins was defending Howard and reached around the Orlando center as he tried to catch a pass about 16 feet away from the basket in the pinch-post area; Cousins committed his fourth foul -- an obvious call to all who were watching -- and reacted in his usual petulant manner. As he walked to the bench after being subbed out, Westphal twice said, "It was a cheap call," without ever looking at Cousins, who also did not look at his coach.
What Cousins needed was his coach looking him in the eye and saying, "I don't care if you have no fouls in a game. We never want you risking a foul on Dwight Howard 16 feet from the basket, unless you have a clear path to the line of the ball."
It's certainly possible that Westphal has given Cousins that speech 1,000 times this season and is just sick of saying the same thing (Cousins leads the league in fouls per game), but you never know when the light will click on. As the saying goes, "A teacher's work is never done."
Secondly, Cousins needs to tighten his body up more. He looks much better than he did in July, so he knows how to do it. But if he can take another 10-20 pounds off, then maybe add 5-8 pounds of muscle, his conditioning will be much improved. And once he's lighter, he can start building better habits again. A faster, lighter, more conditioned DeMarcus Cousins presents a nightmare matchup for most opposing centers in the league.
One more thing to consider: All young players have poor eating habits. Too much sugar, too few healthy foods and an overall diet that swings from bad types of food to inconsistent eating times. Getting Cousins on a better eating plan, with an understanding of how to cook and eat healthy, would pay big dividends. Not only would he get in better shape, but studies have shown that a better diet could even help with his overall mood swings.
As I took in the matchup of Howard versus Cousins, one thought kept creeping into my head. Either Cousins will be a coach killer, the guy who puts up huge numbers because of his immense talent but drives his coach crazy by not competing consistently. Or the Howard-Cousins matchup is one we can look forward to on a far bigger stage one day. In the All-Star Game. Maybe even by 2013. That's how good (or bad) Cousins can be.
I copied and pasted a chunk of the article, but there is much, much more I left out.
The next time you watch DeMarcus Cousins play, try analyzing him using just one word at a time. It's an exercise I do when evaluating players. Here's what I came up with when I watched him in person last Wednesday against Orlando: gigantic, lazy, gifted, infantile, physical, unafraid, vision, anticipation, lost, clueless, different, agile. My guess is you would come up with similar words after observing him.
Unlike many big men who enter the league, Cousins is already loaded with an NBA body and game. His talent jumps off the tape, stat sheets and court. Unfortunately, so do his flaws, especially the problem "between the ears." Every player I've spoken to this season told me Cousins has the worst body language and facial expressions of any NBA player they've ever seen. And I was able to see many of the same things when I watched him up close.
On Cousins' pregame routine:
He was doing the customary spot shooting drill, where a player has to make 10 shots from one spot before moving to the next spot. But when the drummers started in, Cousins immediately looked in their direction and began dancing -- not wildly or comedically, but still dancing. After a few seconds, he resumed his shooting, but he would frequently break back into a quick dance motion between shots. At one time he even paused his entire routine just to watch.
Most good players like Ray Allen and Shane Battier have a very rigid pregame routine, which starts the morning of the game and runs all the way to tipoff. These routines vary from pro to pro, but they are well-planned and scripted.
Cousins would greatly benefit from doing likewise (we'll get into this more later). He is the Kings' best talent, in my opinion, but he's not good enough to walk through his pregame work and still expect to single-handedly beat a good team
With over 10 minutes to play in the third quarter in a tie game, Cousins was defending Howard and reached around the Orlando center as he tried to catch a pass about 16 feet away from the basket in the pinch-post area; Cousins committed his fourth foul -- an obvious call to all who were watching -- and reacted in his usual petulant manner. As he walked to the bench after being subbed out, Westphal twice said, "It was a cheap call," without ever looking at Cousins, who also did not look at his coach.
What Cousins needed was his coach looking him in the eye and saying, "I don't care if you have no fouls in a game. We never want you risking a foul on Dwight Howard 16 feet from the basket, unless you have a clear path to the line of the ball."
It's certainly possible that Westphal has given Cousins that speech 1,000 times this season and is just sick of saying the same thing (Cousins leads the league in fouls per game), but you never know when the light will click on. As the saying goes, "A teacher's work is never done."
Secondly, Cousins needs to tighten his body up more. He looks much better than he did in July, so he knows how to do it. But if he can take another 10-20 pounds off, then maybe add 5-8 pounds of muscle, his conditioning will be much improved. And once he's lighter, he can start building better habits again. A faster, lighter, more conditioned DeMarcus Cousins presents a nightmare matchup for most opposing centers in the league.
One more thing to consider: All young players have poor eating habits. Too much sugar, too few healthy foods and an overall diet that swings from bad types of food to inconsistent eating times. Getting Cousins on a better eating plan, with an understanding of how to cook and eat healthy, would pay big dividends. Not only would he get in better shape, but studies have shown that a better diet could even help with his overall mood swings.
As I took in the matchup of Howard versus Cousins, one thought kept creeping into my head. Either Cousins will be a coach killer, the guy who puts up huge numbers because of his immense talent but drives his coach crazy by not competing consistently. Or the Howard-Cousins matchup is one we can look forward to on a far bigger stage one day. In the All-Star Game. Maybe even by 2013. That's how good (or bad) Cousins can be.
I copied and pasted a chunk of the article, but there is much, much more I left out.
