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| George Karl (right) doesn't have the same level of trust with DeMarcus Cousins as Mike Malone did. (Getty Image) |
Despite Sacramento Kings management's public insistence that DeMarcus
Cousins is unavailable in deals, coach George Karl's intense desire to trade
the All-Star center has made it increasingly unlikely this coach-star
partnership can peacefully co-exist next season, league sources told Yahoo
Sports.
Karl has been recruiting Kings vice president of basketball operations
Vlade Divac and multiple players on the Kings' roster to unite with him in
making the case to owner Vivek Ranadive that Cousins needs to be traded, league
sources said.
Since the end of the 2014-15 season, Cousins has become aware of Karl's
campaign to move him – including teammates telling Cousins, sources said. All
around the Kings and Cousins, there is a growing belief the coach-player
relationship is irreparable. Trust is a constant theme with Cousins, and he's
been unable to build any with Karl, sources said.
No one in the Sacramento organization – not coaches, nor players, nor
support staff – wants to imagine the combustible scenario awaiting Karl and
Cousins should the Kings try to reunite them in training camp.
Ranadive has remained the biggest Kings advocate for holding onto
Cousins, and several sources indicate he has become irritated with Karl's
insistence that the coach doesn't believe he can manage the supremely skilled
and strong-minded star. Cousins have held a firm loyalty to former Kings coach
Michael Malone, whom Ranadive fired shortly into last season. Under Karl, that
relationship couldn't begin to be duplicated in the final weeks of the season.
Karl and members of the Kings front office have made it clear to
opposing team executives and coaches that they hope to soon have a formal
ownership authorization to actively shop Cousins, sources said. Kings
officials, including Karl, have discussed potential deals informally with other
teams, but no other front office has felt comfortable that any deal can happen
until Ranadive is fully on board.
For now, the Kings are pursuing trade scenarios for everyone on the
roster, including talented forward Rudy Gay, league sources told Yahoo Sports.
Sacramento officials believe it will be difficult to find a trade
partner that can give the Kings the value it wants for Cousins – and has a
better chance to find a deal for Gay, sources said.
The Los Angeles Lakers have had significant interest with Cousins, but
their No. 2 overall pick isn't as appealing to the Kings as finding a deal that
includes established, veteran players. Ranadive doesn't want to rebuild with a
move into a new arena on the horizon, and Karl is chasing Don Nelson's all-time
NBA career victories record. Karl's interest isn't in cultivating long-term
assets, but rather compiling as many victories as possible in the near future.
Most teams trying to trade into the lottery believe the Kings are
determined to package the sixth overall pick to bring back veteran talent.
Gay signed a three-year, $40 million extension that starts with the
2015-16 season, a contract that has become even more palatable to teams with
the sharp rise coming in the NBA salary cap. Gay has played well in his
two-plus seasons with the Kings and remains a target of interest with multiple
teams, front-office executives said.
Sacramento is motivated to find a way to create more salary-cap space
with possible deals, something that the Kings will need to pursue Dallas
Mavericks free-agent point guard Rajon Rondo, league sources said. The Kings
and Rondo have a mutual interest, with Rondo intrigued with the idea of a
potential one-year deal in Sacramento that could help to rebuild his
league-wide value, sources said.
Source: Yahoo News
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