DeMarcus Cousins will benefit from Team USA
Sacramento Kings’ center DeMarcus Cousins had a monster year last season. Although the Kings struggled once again, he used his huge numbers to get an invite to training camp with Team USA and did enough to earn a spot with the team in the FIBA World Cup, which got underway this morning.
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John Zitzler of Basketball Insiders expects Cousins to benefit from playing with Team USA.
"After another season where Cousins experienced great personal success, he was chosen to be a member of Team USA for the 2014 FIBA World Cup. This is great opportunity for Cousins to play with and against some of the best players in the world. He will hit the ground running next season following FIBA World Cup play and will again look to be dominant down low. There is a strong chance that next year is the year that Cousins finally breaks through and makes his first All-Star appearance. Whether the Kings take the next step as a team and experience collective success remains to be seen."
Last season, Cousins put up 22.7 points, 11.7 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.5 blocks per game while shooting 49.6% from the field and 72.6% from the free throw line. In his four-year career, the fifth-overall pick in the first round of the 2010 NBA Draft has averaged 17.9 points, 10.2 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.0 blocks per game while shooting 46.2% from the floor, 14.8% from beyond the arc and 71.5% from the foul line. Clearly, he showed great improvement in the 2013-2014 season.
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