Report: Celtics, Mavericks among four teams trying to work Cousins trade

Know this — the scenario about to be laid out tells you what DeMarcus Cousins and his people are thinking and hoping for. What it does not do is tell you the reality of the situation. Not in the least.

The reality here is a complex dynamic that starts with Cousins firing his long-time agent and hiring Dan Fegan, the guy who brought us the Dwightmare and an agent known for getting his players traded if they want out of somewhere.

I don’t think there is any doubt Cousins wants out of Sacramento, which leads us to a report from the well-connected Kentucky Sports Radio (hat tip to Tom Ziller for this one):

Today KSR has spoken with a source close to DeMarcus Cousins both that confirms trade talks are ongoing and Cousins is hoping a deal will be worked out soon. According to the source, the four teams that are most likely to end up making such a deal for cousins are Boston, Dallas, Orlando and Charlotte. The USA Today story reported that Detroit, Houston and Washington are also potential destinations, but the source tells KSR that Cousins has been told those are all unlikely for a variety of reasons.

Let’s start here — it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out that KSR’s sources here are pretty one sided. This is Cousins dream scenario, to get traded to a team where he can win and/or be a franchise anchor going forward.

What this ignores is the entire Kings side of the equation. There we have the Maloof brothers, who own the team, are big fans of Cousins and are not interested in trading him, reports Sam Amick of USA Today.

The decision to reinstate Cousins on Dec. 24 was made unilaterally by the team’s owners and went against the wishes and planned protocol of the team’s front office, according to three people with knowledge of the situation who spoke to USA TODAY Sports on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation. Specifically, one person with knowledge of the situation said Kings co-owner Gavin Maloof initiated a dialogue with Cousins on Dec. 23, had him discuss the situation with Smart and then made it clear that Cousins would return to the team the following day at practice…

The team’s uncertain status in remaining in Sacramento could be causing a ripple effect here, as well. The Maloofs have long since targeted Cousins as the prized asset of their organization and have been extremely reluctant to trade him thus far.

All this has reportedly frustrated long-time general manager Geoff Petrie, but Petrie is essentially a lame-duck GM who will not be back with the team after his contract expires this summer.

So the problem with trading Cousins start with the owners don’t really want do and may well veto any deals.

Next problem: The offers the Kings will get. The deals the listed teams can offer are not going to thrill Sacramento — they are giving up a potential franchise player and in return they will want good young players and picks to rebuild with. What’s more, the Kings are not loaded with horrific oversized deal to balance out a big trade. Plus the Kings have a full roster of guaranteed deals so they are not looking for 3-for-1 deals.

Boston can offer two nice role players where there are injury concerns in Avery Bradley (coming off shoulder surgery) and Jared Sullinger (his medical red flags at the draft were about how long he could last in the league). Then who you going to throw in, Fab Melo? The Celtics are desperate for big man help but are leaving him in the D-League. Nobody wants Jeff Green on his contract. Honestly, the only player that fits the Kings needs is Rajon Rondo and obviously Boston isn’t moving him.

Then go down the list, Dallas has squat on that roster in terms of young quality players. Orlando can throw out there Andrew Nicholson, Mo Harkless and maybe Gustavo Ayon, but that shouldn’t get the job done without a lot of picks. And even them probably not. Charlotte has Michael Kidd-Gilchrist and squat else.

All of which is to say, there is going to be a lot of Cousins trade talk as Fegan tries to work his “magic” but he has a long way to go. First he has to find a deal that doesn’t totally suck, which doesn’t easily appear among the teams mentioned. Then he has to convince Kings ownership — which is distracted by trying to find someone to build them an arena in another city — to give up the guy they want to build around. Good luck with that.

A trade of Cousins is certainly not impossible, but the idea of soon and to the teams currently in play is highly unlikely.

More likely, this just ends badly.