5. DeMarcus Cousins (C, New Orleans Pelicans, 2018 UFA)
This is a huge risk placing an injured big man in the top ten, let alone top five. An Achilles injury could end the remarkable run that Cousins has been on since 2011.
Still, he is well known as the best true center in the NBA. In fact, he joins Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Wilt Chamberlain, and Elgin Baylor to average 25 points, 12 rebounds and five assists per game in a season, respectively.
This is fantastic news for Boogie. He does not halter frontcourt minutes and would size well to Brook Lopez‘s and Julius Randle’s output in statistics and effort. Incidentally, Lonzo Ball is a great fit for a playmaker to Cousin’s throne.
Intangibles serve king, however, for DeMarcus Cousins. He is well known around the league as a “hothead,” and Boogie doesn’t bode well for coaches he doesn’t like. Don’t expect him to come alone. With Anthony Davis torching the league, expect the Pelicans to pay him a more than decent amount of cash. Magic and Pelinka still need to at least take a quick survey of Cousins.