The Spurs have been mostly quiet after the first day of NBA free agency, but rumors surfaced Wednesday that linked guard DeMar DeRozan to center DeMarcus Cousins.
Shams Charania, NBA insider for The Athletic and Stadium, reported DeRozan reached out to the former All-Star, who played last season with Golden State.
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“There are several teams that are intrigued by DeMarcus Cousins,” Charania said. “I’m told he’s had direct communication with some star players from other teams, one being DeMar DeRozan, of the Spurs.”
There a several teams that are ‘intrigued’ by DeMarcus Cousins, per @ShamsCharania
— NBA Central (@TheNBACentral) July 3, 2019
Cousins has had direct communication with DeRozan and a few other star players. pic.twitter.com/OUBJXkofjZ
DeRozan played with Cousins on the U.S. men’s national basketball team that won Olympic gold in 2016.
Cousins has also played with Spurs forward Rudy Gay, who recently re-signed with San Antonio.
Marc Stein, NBA insider for The New York Times, also reported Wednesday that Cousins had changed his representation and enlisted Jeff Schwartz, of Excel Sports, to be his agent.
Schwartz also represents Spurs forward LaMarcus Aldridge.
Connecting some dots on DeMarcus Cousins to #Spurs rumors:
— RJ Marquez (@KSATRJ) July 3, 2019
1. DeMar DeRozan reaches out to Boogie via @ShamsCharania.
2. Rudy Gay played with DC in SAC.
3. Cousins now has same agent as Aldridge via @TheSteinLine.
4. Still have some money left with MLE...hmm🤔 #NBAFreeAgency pic.twitter.com/0yGFgaJqNV
It’s unclear if the Spurs' front office has any interest in Cousins, but if they were to add him, they would have to either trade or release someone on the roster, which currently stands at 15.
The Spurs would also have to get creative with Cousins’ potential salary, since they do not have much flexibility with the cap.
Cousins is a six-time NBA All-Star but suffered an Achilles tendon injury two seasons ago.
He played with the Warriors last season and averaged 16.3 points and 8.2 rebounds in 30 games.
Cousins was reinjured in the playoffs and struggled at times with the Warriors in the NBA Finals.