Dodgers

Lakers News: Should the Lakers Bring Boogie Back?

The Lakers hoped the reward would outweigh the risk when they signed DeMarcus “Boogie” Cousins to a one-year, $3.5 million contract last July. After sustaining a preseason knee injury that left him on the bench for the season thus far, Cousins did not get the chance to prove his value in LA before the front office waived his contract to make room for Markief Morris.

While Laker ties to the four-time All-Star appeared to be severed for good, the NBA presented an interesting opportunity. General Managers around the league agreed that there should be flexibility with rosters upon the return of play. Among the options considered were expanding team rosters or having players available to replace those sick or injured. Either option would open the door for Lakers to sign Cousins again.

But the question we are here to ask is this: should the Lakers risk another one-year contract on Boogie Cousins? Let’s weigh the pros and cons.

New Orleans Pelicans forward Anthony Davis and forward DeMarcus Cousins during the second quarter of a 2017-18 game against the Sacramento Kings at the Smoothie King Center.

Pros

A four-time All-Star, Cousins is known for his defensive prowess. He averaged 11.1 total rebounds over the last 4 seasons with New Orleans and Golden State while forcing an average of 3.9 turnovers.

Even if we were to sidebar Cousins’ skills as an individual player, fans would get to see the reunion of the dynamic duo that took the Pelicans to the Western Conference Semi-Finals in 2018. During their time together in New Orleans, Cousins and Lakers forward Anthony Davis pushed each other to their best performances. Both had career-highs while playing together, averaging a combined 53.3 points per game. Cousins averaged career highs in rebounds (12.9) and assists (5.4) while Davis showed potential to perform as a stretch-5, shooting 34 percent beyond the arc.

Cousins was a great chemistry piece, even when sitting on the bench. When you throw Lebron James and Rajon Rondo into the mix on the court, you set up a dangerous Lakers line-up.

 

Demarcus Boogie Cousins Tears ACL — Lake Washington Physical TherapyCons

I’ll just come out and say it: you only get the results mentioned above if he is healthy—a task that’s proved less than easy.

For the past three seasons, Boogie appears to have taken Sisyphus’ place pushing that rock up the hillside in Hades. He rode his season-highs with the Pelicans in 2018 before going down with a tearing his Achilles tendon in January. Cousins returned to the court nearly a year later with the Golden State Warriors. He played 30 games, building momentum before injuring his quad in the first round of the 2019 NBA Playoffs. After signing with the Lakers, Cousins moved south to Los Angeles in search of a new start… before tearing his left ACL in Las Vegas.

It’s also worth mentioning that the Lakers have a healthy supply of centers as it is. Even with a healthy Boogie Cousins, the Lakers already have Dwight Howard, JaVale McGee, and now Markief Morris down low; let’s not forget they signed Morris for half the amount of Boogie’s original contract. His temper also gets him into foul trouble as he averages about 3.8 personal fouls a game.

You can’t help but feel bad for the guy. After the start of a promising career in Sacramento and coming into his own in New Orleans, Boogie’s drive to play elite basketball is met with resistance from his own body. Boogie has a lot of potential upside in the Lakers’ locker room. But it’s possible LA would resign another health risk with the same results.

With that said, should the Lakers look into resigning DeMarcus Cousins? Let us know what you think in the comments!

Christian Camacho

Born and raised in the San Fernando Valley, I grew up cheering for the Dodgers and the Lakers. I went across the country to Florida State University (Go Noles!) to study Communications and Sport Management. Now, I'm back in the valley looking to contribute to the LA sports scene.
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