Stop me — oh, oh, oh, stop me — if you've heard this one before, but all is not splendid and calm in the world of DeMarcus Cousins. The Sacramento Kings center — whose most notable accomplishments this season have been arguing with a color commentator , losing his confidence and getting suspended for punching a dude in the stuff — was suspended indefinitely by the Kings last Saturday "for unprofessional behavior and conduct detrimental to the team," a punishment stemming from a verbal altercation with head coach Keith Smart during Sacramento's Dec. 21 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers that resulted in the 22-year-old big man being benched and sent to the locker room for the entirety of the second half. Cousins apologized for his outburst after the game, but was held out of the Kings' Dec. 23 win over the Portland Trail Blazers, after which he emphasized that he wants to stay in Sacramento . Now, here's where it gets tricky. (As if it was simple before.) The Kings reinstated Cousins on Monday, after just one game on the shelf. But despite bringing Cousins back to the active roster, Smart chose not to bring Cousins to Portland for the back end of the home-and-home set on Wednesday, then said after Thursday's practice that he had made a decision as to whether he'd play Cousins in the Kings' Friday home game against the New York Knicks, but that he wouldn't share it “because that’s my prerogative to keep it where I want to keep it right now,” which, given Cousins' reinstatement four days earlier, seems weird. Later Thursday, Smart said in a radio interview that he is "leaning toward" playing Cousins against the Knicks, so it's likely he'll return tonight. But that information had not been shared with Cousins as of the time he was compelled to speak with reporters on Thursday, which was, um, pretty terse. Like, Pop-on-Sager-level brusque . You can catch video of the media session — all three minutes of it — via Sacramento ABC affiliate News10 or FOX affiliate FOX40 ; below, some choice excerpts from Boogie going Hemingway.
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