The most pitiful genius in the NBA: In just 5 years, from the league s number one center to no ball to play

He was the most dominant center in the NBA league, and the current star ranked 7th. Before Jokic reached his peak, he was the "dream front" of all NBA teams. He could perfectly adapt to any system and tactics. However, he went downhill due to an injury. He wandered 7 teams in 5 years and disappeared on the NBA stage early.

On January 26, 2016, under the gaze of nearly 20,000 fans in the game, Cousins ​​entered the opponent's penalty area again and again, scoring continuously, and finally frozen at 56 points, setting a career scoring record, and tied the team history record maintained by Oscar Robertson. In addition, he also grabbed 12 rebounds, sent 4 assists, 1 steal, and 2 blocks, becoming the first player in the NBA to get this data in the past 30 years.

Amid the cheers of "MVP", Cousins ​​pointed his one-handed finger at the sky, which showed that this was his home court and once again proved his identity as the No. 1 center in the league, but who would have thought that just two years later, this inside beast would become a homeless man...

Despite such outstanding performance, the Kings still lost by 1 point. Although Cousins ​​is as fierce as a fire and looks careless, as a professional player, he valued the most as a professional player. The frequent empty cuts made Cousins ​​bored with Sa City. After negotiations with the management, he was finally traded by the team to the Pelicans, and Anthony Davis, who was also the No. 1 power forward at the league at the time, formed a historically-level inside double tower.

"Many people say that now is the era of small balls, and the Twin Towers are outdated products. You can't shoot, you can't get past the Warriors."

Whenever you hear such remarks, Cousins ​​will be furious. Of course, he also admitted that the league at that time was indeed the Warriors' world.

"They won the championship and they set a record of 73 wins, so you must respect them and understand their tactics." - Cousins

In fact, since 2015, the big boy has realized that the times are changing, and shooting will be a compulsory course for the center. So he came to the training hall two hours in advance every day to practice three-point shooting. In the 15-16 season, Cousins ​​hit 70 three-pointers. You should know that in the previous five seasons, he only made 11 goals in total. Not only did he increase his output, but his three-point shooting percentage also exceeded 35%.

After coming to the Pelicans, three-pointers became Cousins' conventional weapon, averaging 5.6 shots and able to hit 2.1 goals. With Davis' fire support, he played his best season in his career, averaging 25.2 points, 12.9 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.6 blocks, with a shooting percentage of 47%, and a three-point shooting percentage of 35.4%. The inside combination of Cousins ​​and Davis produced an excellent chemistry. They were both inside and outside, offense and defense, and their style of play was very comprehensive.

Especially Cousins, he is a completely epoch-making product. He can not only play singles at low positions in the interior, but also shoot outside, grab backcourt rebounds, and easily push to the frontcourt, completing a layup in one-stop. At that time, the Pelicans were the challenger who gave the Warriors the most headache. In the second game of the season, they almost overturned the Warriors. The scene of the two towers joining together for 70 points is a scene that Cole can't forget until now.

"Our inside line was completely exploded."

But unfortunately, beauty always seems to exist in a blink of an eye, like a meteor in the sky and a rainbow after the rain. Before Davis could completely get out of the injury, Cousins ​​also fell down. And it was a serious injury like a torn Achilles tendon, which was almost devastating for basketball players' careers, especially for inside players like Cousins ​​who are 2.13 meters tall and weigh 270 pounds.

The Pelicans management was only willing to offer him a two-year, $40 million contract extension, but Cousins ​​refused. Cousins, who felt disrespected, finally chose to join the Golden State Warriors with a one-year, $5.3 million middle-class contract.

Unfortunately, the Warriors did not become the redemption of Cousins' career. On the contrary, the injury curse was still closely followed. In 2019, he suffered another laceration injury of the left quadriceps. That season, the Warriors also lost to the Raptors in the finals due to injury problems. Cousins's dream of winning and gilded dream were all shattered.

From then on, he started a endless wandering road: he joined the Lakers in the 2019-20 season, but was reimbursed after the ACL torn;

joined the Rockets with an unsecured contract in the 2020-21 season, but he performed poorly and was sacked three months later;

and then he went to the Clippers, Bucks and Nuggets.

In five years, seven teams have been replaced. The former No. 1 center in the United States cannot even find a stable foothold. There is no way. From the All-Star to the substitute, the huge gap not only needs to be accepted from the heart, but also faces technical transformation. After all, Cousins ​​was a center with a round-the-round share of up to 35%, and the team needed him as the tactical center. However, after becoming a substitute, Cousins ​​must adapt to the new system, or play a space shooter, a card dealer, or a guardian of the penalty area.

In addition, before completing the transformation, Cousins ​​had to continue to fight against injuries. The weight that could not be reduced makes the surgical area fragile. He had to adjust the way of exerting force, but that would aggravate the chance of illness in other parts. After a period of ideological struggle, Cousins ​​finally chose to leave..

In the overseas arena where competition is not fierce, Cousins ​​regained his confidence in playing and became the inside beast again. During his time in the Taiwan League, he averaged 22 points, 10 rebounds, and 5.5 assists per game, and then moved to the Puerto Rico League. Although there are many players with NBA resumes here, Cousins ​​still handed out a report card of 19.8 points, 9.8 rebounds, and 4.3 assists, helping the team to enter the finals.

Successful overseas experience has connected Cousins ​​with the NBA again. When she participated in the Dream Chasing Blog show last year, Green asked Cousins ​​if she still wanted to return to the NBA? But he said, "To be honest, I won't think about it anymore. That page has turned over. I want to start a new journey."

From 2010 to 2022, DeMarcus Cousins' NBA journey came to an imperfect end, but his basketball career is still continuing. He is now like a missionary, rushing to the basketball arena of the world. While feeling different humanities, he is also spreading basketball culture and spirit. Perhaps compared to those times in the NBA, Cousins ​​is happier and happier at this moment.

Isn't this the case in life? When you are confused and overwhelmed by reality, it is better to change your life and find a new outlet, and you will find that life can actually be beautiful.