The offseason has been a tumultuous one for the Sacramento Kings, to say the least. At the heart of a bevy of issues has been questions about the relationship between star center DeMarcus Cousins and head coach George Karl. It is no secret that the two have had their fair share of issues since Karl replaced Mike Malone midway through last season. At media day, however, the two addressed that relationship, both saying that things were going well.
Karl was first asked about the pair’s relationship and answered with the following (via Sactown Royalty)
I think it’s solid to good … That’s where I’m at with it. If I had to grade my guys giving me a summer, Cuz gave me an A+ summer. He gave me physically an A+ summer and mentally an A+ summer and I see a different player. I see a different substance of character in this guy right now. But it’s not a light switch, you don’t take it from here and go up to being excellent or great. It’s going to take some time, there’s going to be some falls and as a coaching staff that’s what we’ve got to be ready for.
That’s high praise from a coach that does not get along with his superstar. Karl also mentioned that he likes to communicate with his team, to get opinions from every player. That seems like a far cry from rumors of Karl being somewhat dictatorial in his decision making. Regardless, Cousins seemed to echo the same sentiments when asked about his relationship with Karl:
It’s solid. We met in Vegas, we came to a head and we talked our differences out like men. At the end of the day, it’s about winning, winning games. That’s one thing me and him can agree on. We want to win … that’s all that really matters, winning.
This is an encouraging sight for the Kings and their fans as all previous issues seemed to be blared out through media rumors and speculation. If the Kings are to make a run for the playoffs in the near future (and they need to in order to please their superstar) they must have some sort of consistency and collaboration in the locker room. At the very least, they need to stray away from this:
???
— DeMarcus Cousins (@boogiecousins) June 23, 2015
