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Yesterday's news felt like a Draymond Green kick in the nuts. On Monday night, free agent All-Star Center Demarcus Cousins signed only a 5.3 million dollar one-year contract to play for the absolutely last team in the entire league that needs more help: The Golden State Warriors.
A ton of the rumors we were hearing linked Boogie to the Los Angeles Lakers, given LA's cap room and desire for more max-level talent to stick next to LeBron James. When it came down to it, he didn't even consider them according to ESPN reporter Chris Haynes. He reported that his final two choices were the Warriors and Celtics.
I just can't believe it. Now the Warriors are going to roll out a starting lineup of five current all-stars in their primes, and two of the top players in a generation in Durant and Curry. DeMarcus is a max-level player when he's healthy and probably the best Center in the game, but since he's coming off his Achilles injury and comes with chemistry concerns, the market was scared to pick him up. He won't be able to play until midway through the season in January or February.
How did we get to this point with Golden State? Kevin O'Connor of The Ringer wrote an excellent article on how the Warriors have been able to pull moves like Durant and Cousins off and still abide by the NBA salary cap. Spikes in the salary cap like we saw in 2016-17(it jumped from $70 million to $94.1 million) gave the Warriors enough room to add in a near-max contract for a willing superstar like Kevin Durant. Other NBA teams threw money at players who weren't totally deserving of big paydays, but they had to fill their rosters with cap space from new contracts. The Lakers struck out on big names and blew a combined $136 million on Timofey Mozgov and Luol Deng in 2016, half of which is still haunting them today. Here is the article if you'd like to learn more.
This move to the Golden State Warriors comes with a lot less pressure compared to any other situation in the league. If Boogie went to almost any other team, he would've been the crown jewel of that team's offseason and would've experienced pressure to produce right away. The pressure doesn't care if Boogie is coming off an Achilles injury, because his name brings the hope that fans so desperately crave. With this Warriors squad, they don't even need him! They just swept the best team the Eastern Conference could throw at them in the Cleveland Cavaliers. It's a low-risk high reward move for Golden State. They're paying him mere pennies compared to what he's worth. If he's healthy, then it's stupid how powerful they'll be and how much talent they have on that roster. If he doesn't play up to par, it's only a one-year contract worth 5.3 million and Boogie will still probably get a ring.
That has been the play for Boogie apparently. Go to the Warriors, Win a ring, improve your image, then hit the market again in 2019 looking for that max contract for real this time. It's an interesting approach, and one I don't think we've ever seen in free agency history. A player of Boogie's caliber in his prime taking SIGNIFICANTLY less than what he's worth to pair up with the Warriors and ring chase. He may think that being a part of a championship team will improve his image among NBA GMs, but it undoubtedly took a massive hit in the eyes of fans. This is just so shocking because he seemed like the last person who would team up with them. What happened to the Boogie Cousins who cussed out a fan in the tunnel for heckling him while wearing a Warriors jersey? That's the one I wish we still had.
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