DeMarcus Cousins’ decision to sign with the Golden State Warriors was one of the most unpopular free agent moves in recent memory, but Memphis Grizzlies swingman Garrett Temple can understand where he is coming from.
Temple, who was teammates with Cousins on the Sacramento Kings during the 2016-17 season, spoke about the four-time All-Star in an appearance this week on “The HoopsHype Podcast” with host Alex Kennedy. While Temple admitted to being “really surprised” by the news, he defended Cousins’ choice.
“As someone who’s friends with Cous’, I was a little scared that he may not get a big deal because of the Achilles injury,” said Temple. “I thought that people may be frightened off because of that. But I talked to him, I hit him up, after the deal and he told me the reasons why. He told me he wanted to go to a team that’s winning, that has a winning culture, and he wants to show that he’s healthy and can still play and then get back out on the market next year.
“Honestly, I thought that was a very mature decision by him, [especially] for a guy who has been pegged as ‘immature.’” Temple continued. “By going to the Warriors, he’s showing people that he’s all about winning. That passion that he displays, some people don’t understand that it’s all about wanting to win. For people who don’t know him, he’s a team guy.”
The 32-year-old Temple, who also serves as a vice president of the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA), signed with Sacramento in 2016 and remained there after Cousins was dealt to the New Orleans Pelicans last year. Temple was then traded to the Grizzlies this summer.
“Now, by going to the Warriors, maybe people can understand, ‘Okay, maybe he is all about winning,'” Temple concluded about Cousins. “Because he could’ve went to a bad team and gotten paid [more money], but that wouldn’t have done anything for him and his value. For him to go to Golden State [impressed me]. And now, I saw today that he said ‘If I have to come off of the bench, I’m cool with it.’ That just shows the maturity level he’s at right now. Now, I really hope he can get healthy enough to really do some good things… against every other team except the Grizzlies (laughs).”
Temple raises several good points about his old teammate, especially since he generated little interest on the open market due to his injury. But that won’t stop others (fans and fellow players alike) from criticizing Cousins’ move to the back-to-back defending champion Warriors, as many indeed did.
