Sacramento Kings Want DeMarcus Cousins A Household Name In India

Although there have been reports as recently as a week ago that the Sacramento Kings were open to trading big man DeMarcus Cousins, both new owner Vivek Ranadive and new head coach Mike Malone did their best to quiet that talk today – not only suggesting they want Cousins to be the cornerstone of the franchise but that they want a “billion Indians” to know who Cousins is.

Speaking to the Sacramento Bee’s Jason Jones, both Ranadive and Malone expressed their optimism with Cousins’ role on the Kings.

Per Jones:

"Malone says Cousins should be the “cornerstone” of the franchise, could be most talented big man in the game any given night.Ranadive wants DeMarcus Cousins to be well known in India. Malone jokes he and Cousins could host clinics in Mumbai.Vivek would like nothing more than “a billion Indians” to know DeMarcus Cousins."

The extremely talented though at times volatile Cousins has been in recent contact with both Malone and Ranadive, Cousins being the first call Ranadive made after the sale of the franchise went through this past week. Their hope is that a much more stable environment and a desire to win – two things that were ignored under the previous Kings ownership – will help Cousins grow into the player and person the Kings franchise wants him to become.