DeMarcus Cousins considered retirement

DeMarcus Cousins admits: He thought about quitting. “A lot of doors closed,” Cousins says. Houston, where Cousins played 25 games in 2020-21, was rock bottom. “It was horrible,” Cousins said. “A lot of teams promise you one thing, will tell you something in your face, and when the time comes around, no phone calls, they go silent. They tell you one thing and then tell your agent another. It’s just a lot of bulls—. There’s a lot of bulls— in this business, and in my eyes, a lot of it’s unfair. But it is what it is.”
Source: Chris Mannix @ Sports Illustrated

What’s the buzz on Twitter?

Peter Vecsey @PeterVecsey1
Before every Nuggets’ game, the NBA should get ahead of itself and automatically deduct 15-25G from DeMarcus Cousins’ pay… – 6:34 PM

DeMarcus Cousins @boogiecousins
Man Big Perk so damn funny 🤣🤣🤣 – 5:46 PM

Melissa Rohlin @melissarohlin
Denver Nuggets center DeMarcus Cousins has been fined $15,000 for kicking towels into the spectator stands, the league announced today. – 3:42 PM

Adam Zagoria @AdamZagoria
Denver Nuggets center DeMarcus Cousins has been fined $15,000 for kicking towels into the spectator stands, it was announced today by Byron Spruell, President, League Operations. – 3:38 PM

Mark Haynes @markhaynesnba
Denver’s DeMarcus Cousins has been fined 15k for kicking towels into the stands. It happened during the second quarter. – 3:38 PM

Ohm Youngmisuk @NotoriousOHM
DeMarcus Cousins was fined $15,000 for kicking towels into the stands with 7:27 remaining in the second quarter of the Nuggets’ Game 4 win over the Warriors. – 3:37 PM

Harrison Wind @HarrisonWind
DeMarcus Cousins has been fined $15K for kicking towels into the stands in the 2nd quarter of Game 4, NBA just announced. – 3:37 PM

Mike Vorkunov @MikeVorkunov
DeMarcus Cousins has been fined $15,000 by the NBA for kicking towels into the stands – 3:33 PM

Michael Singer @msinger
DeMarcus Cousins has been fined $15,000 for kicking towels into the stands in Game 4. pic.twitter.com/xZw26sI5pu – 3:33 PM

JD Shaw @JShawNBA
Nuggets center DeMarcus Cousins has been fined $15,000 for kicking towels into the spectator stands during Game 4, NBA says. – 3:32 PM

Jeff Zillgitt @JeffZillgitt
The NBA playoff fines keep coming. Nuggets center DeMarcus Cousins docked $15K for kicking towels into the stands. pic.twitter.com/N1sKk78oKS – 3:31 PM

Jason Anderson @JandersonSacBee
DeMarcus Cousins fined $15,000. pic.twitter.com/5rhw82ytg5 – 3:31 PM

Mark Medina @MarkG_Medina
The NBA fines Nuggets center DeMarcus Cousins $15,000 “for kicking towels in the spectator stands” during Game 4 vs Warriors – 3:31 PM

Michael Singer @msinger
DeMarcus Cousins asked about those who call Joker an “analytical MVP,” calls them “casuals.”
“It’s a lot of experts on Twitter.” – 3:10 PM

Michael Singer @msinger
Couple thoughts on Game 4:
• Monte doesn’t shrink (19 in the 2nd half)
• Austin’s defense was incredible. Think he’s the counter to GSW’s Death Lineup.
• They don’t win without AG/Bones
• Don’t overlook those Boogie minutes when the game was teetering to start the 4th
• 🃏 – 1:11 PM

Ohm Youngmisuk @NotoriousOHM
Will Barton drills the Nuggets’ biggest 3 of the series and DeMarcus Cousins is loving it on the bench. Things much different than when they were in SF… and Nuggets are 7.9 seconds away from taking it back to The Bay – 6:32 PM

Michael Singer @msinger
DeMarcus Cousins and Bones Hyland just did a round-about hokey-pokey going into that Warriors TO, re-enacting the spin move Joker just put on Draymond. – 6:19 PM

Katy Winge @katywinge
Steady diet of DeMarcus Cousins to start this 4th quarter. Super aggressive – 6:02 PM

Kyle Kuzma @kylekuzma
Good to see boogie hoopin!! My dawg!💯 – 6:02 PM

Michael Singer @msinger
A seismic Boogie bucket. Momentum was turning toward the Warriors there. Still, they need to clean these turnovers up. – 5:59 PM

More on this storyline

The money disappeared. Interest from teams dried up. A player once considered one of the NBA’s best centers struggled to earn 10-day contracts. “It’s crazy, you do so much and then leave,” Cousins told SI. “You’ve proven yourself year after year, and once you hit the end of that adversity, they just kind of give up on you. You know, I look at some of my other peers, and they went through similar situations and they can bounce back and still get the same opportunities. I mean, I would be lying to say it doesn’t suck, but these are the cards I’ve been dealt, and all I can do is deal with it to the best of my ability.” -via Sports Illustrated / April 27, 2022

Cousins will be a free agent again this summer. He says he has enjoyed his time in Denver and would like to come back. But he admits he still pines for a bigger role. He hopes his stint in Denver has shown the league that, at 31, he still has a lot left. “I feel great,” Cousins says. “I know I’m healthy again, I know my body can hold up to everything I’m trying to do out there to play at a high level. I’m grateful for this opportunity, and I appreciate Mike giving me a chance, believing in my talents. We’ll see what happens.” -via Sports Illustrated / April 27, 2022

DeMarcus Cousins: Then Milwaukee came around. I thought I had found a home. Everything went smoothly. Another situation where I still don’t really understand that situation. They say it was for financial flexibility that [I was waived]. I’m not buying it. So, I don’t know. I’ve always been a firm believer everything happens for a reason, so this place [Denver] found me, and it’s been good. It’s been a good fit on both sides. They appreciate my value. It’s mostly been smooth since then. -via Andscape / April 19, 2022