DeMarcus Cousins
 Cousins in August 2011 at the Drew League/Goodman League game. |
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| No. 15 – Sacramento Kings | |
|---|---|
| Center | |
| Personal information | |
| Born | August 13, 1990 Mobile, Alabama |
| Nationality | American |
| High school | LeFlore High School, Mobile, Alabama |
| Listed height | 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) |
| Listed weight | 270 lb (122 kg) |
| Career information | |
| College | Kentucky |
| NBA Draft | 2010 / Round: 1 / Pick: 5th overall |
| Selected by the Sacramento Kings | |
| Pro career | 2010–present |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| NBA All-Rookie First Team (2011) | |
DeMarcus Cousins (born August 13, 1990) is an American professional basketball player with the Sacramento Kings of the National Basketball Association. He played college basketball at the University of Kentucky.
Contents |
[edit] High school career
Cousins was named to the 2009 McDonald's All-American Team. He had 14 points and 8 rebounds.[1] Cousins also played in the 2009 Nike Hoop Summit at the Rose Garden in Portland and the Jordan Brand Classic at Madison Square Garden where he scored 10 points for the black team.[2] Cousins led LeFlore to the Alabama class 6A Final Four against Hillcrest that beat Austin High School to progress to the state championship; falling short to future college teammate Eric Bledsoe and Parker High School.
[edit] College career
Cousins first committed to Alabama-Birmingham on February 28, 2008 but never signed a letter of intent because he wanted to be released if UAB's head coach, Mike Davis, left for another school.[3] Cousins decomitted from UAB and committed to Memphis on March 9, 2009.[4] He reopened his recruitment after then Memphis coach John Calipari was hired at Kentucky. On April 7, 2009, Cousins decided to follow John Calipari to Kentucky.[5] He signed his Letter of Intent on April 15. At Kentucky, Cousins averaged 15.1 points, 9.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game. Led by Cousins and John Wall, the Wildcats reached the Elite Eight of the 2010 NCAA Tournament.
[edit] NBA career
[edit] 2010–11
On April 7, 2010, Cousins announced that he would forgo his final three seasons of collegiate eligibility and enter the 2010 NBA Draft, where he was selected by the Sacramento Kings with the fifth overall pick. On July 7, 2010, Cousins signed his rookie contract with the Kings. The contract is worth about $7 million the first two years with a team option for the third and fourth years.[6] Cousins was named the Rookie of the Month for July during the NBA Summer League.[7] Cousins was also named to the NBA All-Rookie First Team at the end of the 2010-2011 season.
[edit] 2011-2012
On January 1, 2012, head coach Paul Westphal sent Cousins home from the Kings' home game against the New Orleans Hornets, saying that Cousins was "unwilling/unable to embrace traveling in the same direction as his team; it cannot be ignored indefinitely."[8] Cousins, who had been averaging 13.0 points and 11.3 rebounds per game at the time of the dismissal, reportedly demanded to be traded from the Kings. Cousins later denied asking to be traded.
On January 5, 2012, Paul Westphal was fired from the Kings, leading many to speculate that the head coach's tumultuous relationship with Cousins was a factor in his being replaced.[9] On February 8, 2012, Cousins was selected to play in the Rising Stars Challenge. He will be playing for Team Chuck, with a mix of rookies and sophomores.
[edit] NBA statistics
| Legend | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field-goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field-goal percentage | FT% | Free-throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
[edit] Regular season
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010–11 | Sacramento | 81 | 62 | 28.5 | .430 | .167 | .687 | 8.6 | 2.5 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 14.1 |
| Career | 81 | 62 | 28.5 | .430 | .167 | .687 | 8.6 | 2.5 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 14.1 |
[edit] Awards/Honors
[edit] College
- 2009–10 SEC Freshman of the Year
[edit] High school
- 2009 McDonald's All-American team selection
- 2009 Jordan Brand High School All-American team selection
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ "Wednesday's McDonald's All-American Game box scores". Seattletimes.nwsource.com. April 2, 2009. http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/highschoolsports/2008969865_webhoopagatewed02.html?syndication=rss. Retrieved March 22, 2010.
- ^ "Big men shine in Jordan Brand Classic". Sports.espn.go.com. http://sports.espn.go.com/highschool/rise/basketball/boys/news/story?id=4080678. Retrieved March 22, 2010.[dead link]
- ^ "Top basketball prospect DeMarcus Cousins commits to UAB". Blog.al.com. February 29, 2008. http://blog.al.com/spotnews/2008/02/top_prospect_cousins_commits_t.html. Retrieved March 22, 2010.
- ^ By Seth Davis, SI.com (March 8, 2009). "Prep standout Cousins commits to Memphis". Sportsillustrated.cnn.com. http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2009/basketball/ncaa/03/08/cousins.memphis/index.html. Retrieved March 22, 2010.
- ^ Name, Author (April 9, 2009). "DeMarcus Cousins To Kentucky". Slamonline.com. http://slamonline.com/online/college-hs/college/2009/04/demarcus-cousins-to-kentucky/. Retrieved March 22, 2010.
- ^ Kings sign top draft pick Cousins
- ^ Kings' Cousins named Rookie of Month for July
- ^ "Tweet by Sports Illustrated writer Sam Amick". twitter.com. January 1, 2012. https://twitter.com/#!/sam_amick/statuses/153618274331004928. Retrieved January 1, 2012.
- ^ "Paul Westphal fired after 2-5 start". espn.go.com. January 6, 2012. http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/7428725/sacramento-kings-fire-paul-westphal-sign-keith-smart. Retrieved January 22, 2012.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: DeMarcus Cousins |
- DeMarcus Cousins at NBA.com
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- 1990 births
- Living people
- People from Birmingham, Alabama
- American basketball players
- Kentucky Wildcats men's basketball players
- Basketball players from Alabama
- McDonald's High School All-Americans
- Parade High School All-Americans (boys' basketball)
- Centers (basketball)
- Sacramento Kings draft picks
- Sacramento Kings players
