DMC produced like an All-Star this season, and in his mind his reputation cost him a spot in the showcase.
Sacramento Kings center DeMarcus Cousins didn't make the All-Star Game this year, despite having a career season. He's averaging 22.2 points, 11.6 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.5 steals and 1.3 blocks while shooting 50 percent from the field. Those numbers were about the same when the league's coaches picked other players over him to represent the Western Conference. Cousins said he should have been sent to New Orleans for the festivities in an ESPN The Magazine profile:
Asked whether he is hurt about not being named to the team, he answers, "Absolutely. I hear it's because I'm on a losing team, but Kyrie Irving was a reserve with [16] wins. Anthony Davis? Same story. So you can't sell me on that."
Agitated, he stops and sighs. He runs his hand across his forehead and down his face.
"[The fans] pick who they want to pick," he says. "That goes with the reputation. I can accept that. But I was flat done wrong [by the coaches]. And it's clear as day."
To get some nitpicking out of the way: Davis was not selected by the coaches, either -- he was named an injury replacement by the league. Irving was selected by the fans, not the coaches, and started for the Eastern Conference. Still, Cousins does have a point. If not for his reputation as a loose cannon, he could very well have been picked. He has been playing like an All-Star since the start of the season.
The problem, though, is that the West is full of guys who are playing like All-Stars. It looks ridiculous now that Goran Dragic didn't make it, but at the time it was hard to differentiate between him, Tony Parker and Mike Conley. Only Parker made the team. The Cousins vs. Davis argument is a difficult one, and it is likely that the two Kentucky alums will share the frontcourt in that setting at some point. It's just difficult to know when exactly that will be -- as long as Blake Griffin, Kevin Durant, Kevin Love, Dwight Howard, Dirk Nowitzki, LaMarcus Aldridge and Marc Gasol remain in the West, it's going to be tough.