Anthony Davis explains why he wanted to play with DeMarcus Cousins again

A little over two years ago, the New Orleans Pelicans traded Buddy Hield, Tyreke Evans, Langston Galloway, a first-round pick and a second-round pick to the Sacramento Kings for DeMarcus Cousins, pairing Cousins with Anthony Davis and forming the most dominant big man duo in the NBA.

Unfortunately, Cousins and Davis weren’t given the time they needed to grow together due to injuries, including the devastating Achilles tear Cousins suffered last year. Cousins and Davis went their separate ways last summer due to a lack on interest in Cousins from the Pelicans, but they’ll be given a chance to finish what they started in New Orleans with the Los Angeles Lakers this season.

During Davis’ introductory press conference last week, he expressed his excitement to reunite with Cousins and explained why he enjoys playing with Cousins despite all of the noise that has surrounded the 28-year-old center’s attitude in the past.

“Before he came to New Orleans I knew him off the floor very well, and then on the floor, all the media attention he got of being ‘emotional.’ I didn’t really see that. Me and him are really close, and I kind of told him before, ‘we got one goal,’ so he understood,” Davis said.

“I think when you’re in a situation like this, it was rarely talked about him being ‘emotional.’ So when you come to another situation like this, I don’t think it’s going to be a problem at all, because we have one goal, and that’s to win.”

We saw a little bit of that logic in action when Cousin player for the Golden State Warriors last season. Once Cousins is put in a situation where he’s not the main attraction, his so-called behavioral issues become less of a problem.

Aside from that, there are questions about how Cousins will look in his second season removed from his Achilles tear, but Davis is less concerned about that and more excited to be sharing a locker room with his good friend again.

“I love playing with DeMarcus. Obviously we didn’t want it to end, but obviously he had to move on and do what’s best for him and his family,” Davis said. “Now we’ve got the opportunity to reunite in a great situation, so I’m excited about that.”

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