DeMarcus Cousins was close to joining the Nuggets much sooner, but the Bucks moved in and signed him first, he said in an interview with Marc J. Spears of Andscape. Cousins worked out for Denver general manager Calvin Booth in late November, calling the process “real quiet and hush.” He said the Nuggets wanted to sign him at the time, but didn’t have an open roster spot.
The Bucks apparently heard about the workout and brought their entire staff for a look at Cousins. They signed him immediately after his audition and he played there until January 6, being waived before his salary would have become guaranteed for the rest of the season. Cousins still doesn’t understand what went wrong in Milwaukee.
“They put all their cards on the table, told me they needed me,” he said. “They were even talking long term, and that’s why, like I said, that whole situation, it just didn’t make sense. What disappointed me the most was more so just going through my grind. For me, everything felt right. We were winning games. I showed that I’m healthy. I fit in Milwaukee perfect next to the guys that were out there. I put up numbers. Everything worked out. I don’t know. Just for it to happen the way it did.”
Cousins adds that the Nuggets called him the next day, so he never gave any thought to retiring. He signed three 10-day contracts with Denver before receiving a deal that covered the rest of the regular season.
There’s more on the Nuggets:
- Coach Michael Malone stressed the need for unity after his team melted down in Monday’s Game 2 loss to the Warriors, writes Ohm Youngmisuk of ESPN. Not only was Nikola Jokic ejected, but Will Barton and Cousins had a heated exchange on the sidelines in the third quarter and had to be separated. “We’ve got to stick together,” Malone said. “We can’t splinter in adverse times. I just want to make sure as we get on this plane to go home that we get on that plane together, knowing that we have a chance to get our first win at home in a few days. That’s our whole focus.”
- Jokic is in danger of becoming the sixth player in history to lose in the first round in the same season he was named MVP, per Sam Amick of The Athletic. Jokic, who was announced Sunday as one of the finalists for the award, has been frustrated by the officiating in the first two games of the series, saying, “I mean, it’s pretty much everything,” when asked what led to his ejection.
- The Nuggets need more production from Aaron Gordon, who has missed 13 of his 19 shots so far and has a combined 15 points in the two games, notes Mike Vorkunov of The Athletic. “Aaron Gordon has to be in attack mode,” Malone said. “I don’t want him settling for 3s. Put people in the rim; that’s when Aaron Gordon is at his best.”