DeMarcus Cousins is going to be a member of the Kings for a long, long time.
Despite the fact that the former Kentucky center has had his fair share of issues both onandoff the court during his first few years in the NBA, Sacramento's new ownership group just decided to sign him to a contract extension that will go into effect during the 2014-15 NBA season. That contract extension will be worth approximately $62 million and will keep Cousins in Sac-Town for at least the next five years. And that's a good thing for the Kings, because had they chosen not to sign Cousins to an extension this fall, he would have become a restricted free agent next summer and there would have been 4,927 trade rumors surrounding him during the upcoming NBA season. It's also a good thing because new Kings minority owner Shaquille O'Neal seems to like what he sees in Cousins.
"When I look at a young DeMarcus Cousins," Shaq said recently, "I see a young Shaquille O'Neal. Very talented, very stubborn in his ways."
A young Shaq? Eh, we wouldn't go that far. But Cousins is still just 23, and his best days are definitely ahead of him. And now that he's re-upped with the Kings, those days will be spent in Sacramento.
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[via Sporting News]
