New Orleans Pelicans Player of the Week: DeMarcus Cousins
Each week, I will choose one player to highlight as the New Orleans Pelicans Player of the Week. We’d love to hear your feedback, in the comments or on Twitter.
This week, I’ll be highlighting the terrific play of DeMarcus Cousins, whose surprising versatility has seen him standout early.
Heading into unrestricted free agency next offseason, DeMarcus Cousins continues to obliterate box scores and leave opposing big man helpless. The New Orleans Pelicans have been up and down all season but one thing that has been a constant is the play of DeMarcus Cousins.
The Pelicans center is tearing through opposing teams and the more the Pelicans win, the more exposure Boogie’s play will get. Cousins numbers already have spawned some MVP chatter but the team will need to win for him to have a winnable case. Despite his start to the season, Cousins still holds a less than favorable reputation due to attitude concerns and the perception that he puts up hollow stats.
This is where the New Orleans Pelicans have really unlocked Boogie and where Sacramento failed. The Pelicans have done a good job of letting Boogie be himself. They have embraced his attitude rather than trying to change it. The result has been Boogie cutting down on his technical’s (just two total in New Orleans) and upping his efficiency ( TS% of 59.6, highest of his career). So, what has been the cause of this spike in efficiency?
Well, the first answer is a simple one. DeMarcus Cousins is launching from the three point line with reckless abandon. He is averaging 7 attempts per game from beyond the arc but is only shooting 32 percent from three-point range.
Despite the poor percentage, Cousins threat as an outside shooter has forced bigs to close out on the perimeter. Coach Alvin Gentry even said that Cousins may be the best shooter on the team. While that may be debatable, Cousins impact as a shooter has helped the Pelicans maintain some resemblance of spacing on offense.
In the same game, you see the affect Cousins shooting has on his match-ups. If the defender closes out poorly, Cousins takes advantage to blow by his man. The Pelicans have used the Horns set as their bread and butter this season and it’s easy to see why. With Boogie popping to the three point line and Anthony Davis rolling to the rim, teams are forced to make a decision. Cousins more often than not this season has made the right read on the closeout.
In this clip, Cousins recognizes he has the lob as soon as Lopez switches. It’s these reads that have helped Cousins average nearly six assist per game. Having a big that can react quickly to the defense is a luxury only a handful of teams have. Cousins ability to make plays out of the pick and roll have set him apart from his fellow bigs this year.
Now, that is not to say Cousins has been perfect. He has certainty not. His 5.1 turnover average is quite frankly not good. Despite his status as one of the top passing big men, Cousins attempts a lot of low percentage passes.
An example of Cousins trying to do to much on the pass. Cousins is expecting Diallo to be open but never sees the secondary help defender and the result is a low percentage pass and a turnover. When evaluating Cousins, many of his turnovers stem from trying to do too much. Cousins plays like nobody his size and that is his greatest advantage and at times it’s his greatest disadvantage. However, the Pelicans are letting Boogie be Boogie for better or worse.
One thing is for sure, it’ll be fun to watch.