The NBA trade deadline is just one week away and teams are expected to buy or sell their players depending on the situation. Here is the latest NBA rumor roundup for today including DeMarcus Cousins staying with the Sacramento Kings, update on Jahlil Okafor and more.
'Boogie' wants to stay in Sactown
Cousins is one of the top names being linked to many NBA rumors in the past couple of years but he intends to stay in Sacramento. He told Ramona Shelburne of ESPN that he is very happy with the Kings and he is willing to sign a contract extension.
"I'm very happy. It's where I want to be. I think we're on the right path this season. We're playing the best basketball of the season so far. Our team is extremely confident. We believe we can make this push and make it happen," Cousins said.
The Kings are currently 24-33 but they are just a game and a half behind the eighth seed in the Western Conference. Sacramento has not been in the playoffs for ten seasons. As for Cousins, he is eligible to sign a five-year, $219 million max deal this summer.
No more interest in Jahlil Okafor?
Okafor is the most frequent name on NBA rumors this past week as he was reportedly getting traded after the Sixers sat him out last Saturday and Monday. However, a trade fell through and Okafor seems to be not going anywhere.
According to Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer, the Sixers are still open to trading Okafor but no deal is imminent. Teams are wary of the 21-year-old center because he is only a one-dimensional player. He is a good scorer in the post but he cannot rebounds, pass or defend for his size.
However, it's not bad for the Sixers to keep Okafor because of the cloud surrounding Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons. Embiid is still out with a knee injury while Simmons' foot has not healed properly and he might not be able to play this season.
Los Angeles Lakers to be active at the deadline
In an interview with The Los Angeles Times, Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak revealed that the team is going to be active at the trade deadline. He pointed out that there are teams interested in some of their players.
The Lakers are not going to make the playoffs but they are better off trading veterans to give more playing time to their young players. Some of the veterans the Lakers could trade at the deadline include Lou Williams, Luol Deng, Timofey Mozgov and Nick Young.
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