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DeMarcus Cousins on Criticism of Warriors Deal: 'I Don't Give a F---'

The Internet nearly broke when Cousins signed a one-year, $5.3 million deal with the Warriors.

Jenna West

Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire

DeMarcus Cousins's move to the Warriors earlier this month may have upset some NBA fans, but he isn't really concerned with people's opinions on the matter.

Showtime Sports followed Cousins during his free agency journey and recovery for a docu-series called The Resurgence. The series will premiere at a later date, but a three-minute clip was released on Wednesday.

Cousins is coming off a torn Achilles injury that ended his season with the Pelicans in January after just 48 games. In the clip, the NBA big man shared how he was up for two days straight at the start of free agency, uncertain of where he'd land a deal.

"We reached out to teams—the Pelicans. There was no offer. I understand. The big year. You don't want to ruin it taking a chance on a damaged player. Cool. We reached out to some other teams. We got messages like, 'We don't believe this is a good fit' or 'we got to see what we're doing with our roster right now.' Like just kind of bulls--- answers. And then there were some just flat out 'we can't take that risk.' I had to prepare myself for the situation, the different possibilites that I knew would happen."

Watch the full clip below:

After struggling to find contract offers, Cousins reached out to Warriors president of basketball operations Bob Myers to discuss going to Golden State, according to ESPN.

In the video, Cousins revealed that he reached out to Draymond Green, Kevin Durant and Stephen Curry to discuss the move. His teammates from Team USA were all on board to have the center join them. Cousins went on to sign a one-year, $5.3 million deal with Golden State.

"This is my ace of spades," Cousins said of the deal. "This is my nuclear bomb. My last resort."

Many fans were not happy when Cousins accepted the Warriors deal. However, the center won't let their criticism stop him.

"Yeah, I could've probably gotten a decent contract from a bad team but how does that help me? I'm already fighting a career-ending injury. I'm not going to put myself in an already bad situation to try to prove my value or my worth as a player in a situation that's not looking to win. I knew how it would be perceived from some. I don't give a f---. I'm saying it now because I've seen the reaction, but I didn't give a f---. I knew where my ace was and we made the call.

"There's some motherf------ out there that's probably ripping their hair out right now, and I love it. It's just another test for me to overcome. I've been through so much adversity, if I sat there and dwelled on those moments, where the f--- would I be right now? I don't need anybody feeling sorry for me. I'm a fighter, and I never give up, and I'm taking this challenge head on."

Cousins averaged 25.2 points and career highs with 12.9 rebounds and 5.4 assists in the 2017-18 season before getting injured.

By bringing in Cousins on the mid-level exception, Golden State is essentially replacing JaVale McGee with the two-time All-NBA performer. McGee agreed to a one-year deal with the Lakers shortly after LeBron James announced he was heading to Los Angeles.

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Jenna West
JENNA WEST

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