DeMarcus Cousins Earned His Third Ejection of the Season ... During Halftime [Video]
DeMarcus Cousins earned his league-leading 11th and 12th technical fouls Monday to go along with his league-leading 3rd ejection. What makes the 12th T and 3rd ejection so notable is that they came during halftime. Yes. He was ejected during the mandatory portion of the basketball game where players sit in the locker room and rest up for the second half. That’s what separates DeMarcus Cousins from the average player — while other guys are relaxing, Big Cuz is out there working on his ejections.
Watching live, I saw Cousins walking past his teammates in the opposite direction of the locker room as NBA TV went to the halftime show. Once he got past his final teammate, I briefly thought, “Oh, he’s going to talk to the referees. That seems like a great idea.” Even knowing what I know about DMC and seeing what he was up to, I was still shocked when the studio crew went back to look at the ejection while they were discussing his first technical of the night. Only the 5-foot-9 point guard Isaiah Thomas was left trying to pull Cousins away from the referees. What did he say to get tossed?
Cousins is a world class talent on the court, and just as much of a headcase. (He’s already been suspended by the Kings this season.) Rasheed Wallace owns the NBA record with 41 technical fouls during the 2000-2001 season to go along with seven ejections; Cousins isn’t going to touch that record with the way the rules are these days. However, he is now just four technicals away from his first technical-related one-game suspension.
In Cousins’ defense, he is not that far ahead of the field. Before last night, he was only a T ahead of Matt Barnes, Kobe Bryant, Blake Griffin, Carmelo Anthony and Kevin Durant. And Carmelo has done it in fewer games.
The one upside for Big Cuz and the Kings is that he can’t really hurt his team because they’re so awful. Cousins isn’t in any danger of getting kicked out of a game or suspended during the playoffs because the Kings will never make the playoffs with DeMarcus Cousins as their best player. Cousins needs to play in a system with a coach he will respect. That isn’t happening in Sacramento (or Seattle), especially with the worst coach in the NBA. In case you were wondering, the Kings lost to the Jazz, 98-91.
Previously: DeMarcus Cousins Had Words with Sean Elliott, the Spurs TV Analyst, and Got Suspended For it
Previously: DeMarcus Cousins Wanted to Fight Blake Griffin, Then Whined to a Reporter That Griffin is “Babied” by Referees
Previously: Andrew Bynum Feels Bad for DeMarcus Cousins Because He Plays in Sacramento