The Houston Rockets made a new trend when they traded starting center Clint Capela before the 2020 February NBA trade deadline. Even without a real center on their roster, the Rockets have somewhat managed to win games in the 2019-20 NBA season, beating powerhouse teams like the Los Angeles Lakers. However, if their experiment fails to produce a good result, the Rockets are highly expected to search for a new starting center in the 2020 NBA offseason.
With the team only having limited money to spend this summer, Jason Reed of Fansided’s Lake Show Life believes that DeMarcus Cousins would be the “perfect target” for the Rockets in the 2020 NBA free agency.
“Their hands are tied salary cap-wise so they would have to get really creative in trying to improve the team, which makes Cousins such a perfect target for the Rockets. Using the MLE, the Rockets could bring Cousins in to give them the size that they need on the defensive end while also keeping in touch with their play style. Cousins is a true stretch five and that is exactly what the Rockets could use on this roster. He is not someone who is going to clog the lane and would be a dangerous pick and roll option with either Harden or Westbrook.”
Cousins may have missed the entire 2019-20 NBA season recovering from an injury but if he manages to return to his 100 percent health and regains his All-Star form, he would undeniably be an incredible addition to the Rockets. Cousins would immediately address the Rockets’ need of a starting caliber center and enable them to create their own “Big Three” with James Harden and Russell Westbrook. Aside from his ability to efficiently knock down shots from beyond the arc, Cousins would also give the Rockets a reliable scoring option, great rebounder, facilitator, and rim protector.
In the 30 games he played for the Golden State Warriors in the 2018-19 NBA season, Cousins averaged 16.3 points, 8.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.5 blocks, and 1.3 steals while shooting 48.0 percent from the field and 27.4 percent from beyond the arc. With his current status, the Rockets definitely have a realistic chance of acquiring Cousins by just using the mid-level exception.
Like the past two years, Cousins is expected to use the 2020-21 NBA season to rebuild his value which would greatly help him in landing a decent contract in the summer of 2021. However, the Rockets aren’t the only NBA team who is expected to express interest in acquiring Cousins this summer. Aside from the Rockets, Reed also included the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Clippers on the list of NBA teams who could go after Cousins in the 2020 NBA free agency.
