In his prime, DeMarcus Cousins was one of the most offensively-versatile big men in the league. He had an elite post-up game but was also capable of doing a little bit of playmaking and shooting from beyond the arc.
Nowadays, it is common to see big men be versatile scorers and playmakers. One of those players is Cousins’ own teammate Nikola Jokic. When speaking to Marc Spears of Andscape, Cousins revealed that Nikola Jokic reminds him of himself, and added that he credits himself as the “godfather” of “modern-day bigs”. He even claimed that he was the first big man “getting triple-doubles” and “shooting 3s”.
Absolutely. Not to take anything away from anything, Nikola Jokić. He is a one-of-one. When it comes to these modern-day bigs we see today, that we’re praising today, I feel like I’m the godfather. And they won’t give me the credit, which is fine. But I credit myself. I know what I’ve done in this game. I’m the first big getting triple-doubles. I’m first big shooting 3s. I was getting triple-doubles when there was two bigs in the paint, when there was a power forward and a center. I’ve been doing this.
There is no doubt that DeMarcus Cousins is a predecessor of sorts to modern big men like Nikola Jokic. He wasn’t necessarily as heralded as other modern big men due to injuries derailing his career, but his impact on the game with his skill set is very obvious.
As of right now, it seems likely that DeMarcus Cousins will continue to play a backup center role for the Denver Nuggets. He may not be the star that he once was, but he is still a solid role player that can contribute to winning at a high level, and he is still talented. Hopefully, we see him find success for the rest of his career.
