There have been two trends for the Los Angeles Lakers in free agency thus far this offseason. First, the team has reunited with several players who previously wore the purple and gold. Trevor Ariza, Dwight Howard, Kent Bazemore and Wayne Ellington are all former Lakers.
Second, the Lakers have brought in various big names who might be past their prime but have a lot of accolades. Howard fits that bill as does Carmelo Anthony and the already existing Marc Gasol.
For those reasons, DeMarcus Cousins might seem like a good target. He is a former Laker who never actually played for the Lakers and is a four-time all-star and two-time All-NBA player.
He is a big name, for sure, and one of the most interesting what-ifs in Lakers’ history. That does not mean that the team should sign him.
Three reasons why the Los Angeles Lakers should avoid DeMarcus Cousins:
1. His health
DeMarcus Cousins has suffered several huge injuries and that is the reason why his career went from being a soon-to-be max contract guy to being someone who bounces around from contender to contender on small deals.
His injury-prone past has already burned the Lakers once and the team should be wary of taking that risk again. Most injuries are freak accidents and impossible to predict but a big guy getting hurt often is not a new thing in the league.
Anyone the Lakers sign could get hurt but with Cousins, the threat is higher. He would be playing a small role, sure, but the Lakers cannot afford to bring in a role player only for said role player to miss time with injuries.
The Lakers were burned with injuries last season and it is the team’s number one goal in the regular season to stay healthy. Cousins would not help achieve that.