Chicago Bulls: DeMarcus Cousins free agent signing worth pursuing?

It doesn’t seem like it would be wise at this point for the Chicago Bulls to go after the former star big man DeMarcus Cousins.

I’ve talked about this question a lot entering this cycle of free agency. Is the former Golden State Warriors, New Orleans Pelicans, and Sacramento Kings star center DeMarcus Cousins worth pursuing for the Chicago Bulls on the free agent market this summer?

The Bulls already added a lot of depth to the rotation in free agency thus far. John Paxson and Gar Forman made four key moves that should all help the growth of this roster excel toward contender status in the Eastern Conference. That doesn’t leave much room left for “Boogie” Cousins if he so decides that the Windy City is a good landing spot.

The fact that Boogie is still available on the open market in free agency speaks volumes about what the suitors think of him right now. Before he went through the process of rehabbing his Achilles injury, he was a top big man in the NBA. The only drawback to having him in the locker room ahead of that Achilles injury was his demeanor off-the-court.

However, it seems like another “prove-it” deal for Boogie is in his immediate future. He can’t land a permanent team despite taking a minimum base salary with the Warriors to both try and get back in the NBA’s good graces and ring chase at the same time.

Cousins was pretty productive while he was actually in the rotation for head coach Steve Kerr and the Warriors. But that team relied on him all too much in the NBA Finals six-game series loss to the Toronto Raptors. Despite all that criticism that came his way with the Warriors, Boogie still posted a 21.4 player efficiency rating last season while averaging more than 16.0 points per game.

Shams Charania of The Athletic was caught reporting that the San Antonio Spurs were in contact with Cousins this offseason, mainly from star guard DeMar DeRozan. A billboard even appeared in San Antonio, trying to recruit Boogie to the Spurs to play alongside DeRozan.

https://twitter.com/theScore/status/1147194078922268673

If not for GarPax actually doing so well in free agency thus far, Boogie might be worth taking a flier out on for a minimum contract. The problem now is that there is just too much to lose for the Bulls to make this situation happen with Cousins. Destroying locker room chemistry with a young group that features Lauri Markkanen and Wendell Carter Jr. is not worth it.

While it looks as if Boogie is committed to proving himself with any team that will give him a chance, the Bulls would have to move a lot of pieces around on the trade market to make this work. It is just too much risk for the Bulls to pursue him when it felt as if he was a worthy target on the free agent market early last month to me.