Danny Green hopes Lakers give DeMarcus Cousins a championship ring

DeMarcus Cousins didn’t play a single game for the Los Angeles Lakers this season, but it’s been clear all year that his teammates felt like he was a real part of the team, even after he was eventually cut to make room for Markieff Morris.

So while Cousins didn’t get to travel with the Lakers to the NBA bubble and technically wasn’t even on the roster for the final steps of their run to the 2020 NBA championship, it’s not that surprising that teammate Danny Green said on his latest podcast that he still wants L.A. to give Cousins a ring.

Green was asked on “Inside the Green Room” if he’s heard anything about which former Lakers will be getting a ring. He said he hasn’t, but is hopeful the team will recognize everyone that was on the roster:

“I have not (heard anything). I know baseball is different, I know football is different. From my understanding when I talked to (former Dodger) Ross (Stripling), if you take a swing or throw a pitch in any type of game of theirs, you will get a ring... But with basketball, with us, I’ve seen guys get rings that have been on teams for two weeks, and I’ve seen guys that have been there half the season not get rings, so I don’t know how it’s going to go. It’s ultimately up to the captains, the front office and the organization of how they want to do that, but I’m all for guys that were a part of this team getting rings.

“DeMarcus was there rehabbing all year, the only time he wasn’t with us was in the bubble. Troy (Daniels) was with us most of the year, all year, then he also did well in Denver. The guys that have been with us on the roster and on the team, I think they all deserve an opportunity to get a ring because they were part of the team.”

Green didn’t mention former Lakers starter Avery Bradley there, but general manager (and former agent) Rob Pelinka has already told his former client that the team wants to give him a ring if he’ll accept it. While maybe things are different because Bradley could opt in to his player option and return to the team this year even after opting out of the bubble, it’s a safe bet the Lakers will offer Cousins a ring too, if he wants one. Given that Daniels played against the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals, his case is a little different — i.e. he may be less inclined to accept a ring from the team that beat him — but the Lakers could theoretically offer him one too.

As Green noted, anyone that played for the Lakers this year is technically eligible to receive a ring, it is just up to the Lakers if they want to offer. We’ll see what they ultimately do, but given that all the signs all year have indicated that the Lakers will bring Cousins back for the coming season, it would be a surprise if the team didn’t at least volunteer to give him a ring as well either way.

For more Lakers talk, subscribe to the Silver Screen and Roll podcast feed on iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher or Google Podcasts. You can follow Harrison on Twitter at @hmfaigen.