DeMarcus Cousins Comments on Kings Tenure, Connection with City of Sacramento

Pelicans center DeMarcus Cousins spoke to the media Tuesday prior to his exodus to New Orleans to further discuss the events that led to his departure from the Sacramento Kings.  

"I think everybody does that throughout life," Cousins said when asked if he could have done anything differently, via Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee. "At the same time, I don't regret anything. Everything I've been through has helped me grow as a person, so I'm good. I'm in a good place. I learned from my mistakes."

Cousins also took to Instagram to say goodbye to Sacramento:

Cousins, 26, was traded to New Orleans along with Omri Casspi on Monday in exchange for Buddy Hield, Tyreke Evans, Langston Galloway, a 2017 first-round pick and a 2017 second-round pick. He was hours removed from playing in his third consecutive All-Star Game.

Despite being the Kings' best player since the beginning of this decade and arguably the NBA's best center, Cousins' trade haul was decidedly underwhelming. Sacramento general manager Vlade Divac threw some unquestioned shade in Cousins' direction after the deal was announced, saying "character matters" in a team statement and insinuating agents blocked another, better deal that was on the table days earlier.

Ric Bucher of Bleacher Report reported Cousins' actions following a Feb. 5 win over the Warriors, after which he shouted "F--k Golden State!" in the direction of fans, were also a factor in the Kings' decision to move on. 

"I'm OK with it," Cousins said of the team's criticism on his way out. "I kind of expected it. I've seen this before. I'm moving on." 

While there were undoubtedly hard feelings between Cousins and management, this trade shed some light on the close relationship the city of Sacramento had with its star. Carmichael Dave of The Drive 1140 provided video of an emotional Cousins on Monday night:

The love affair continued a day later when Cousins was asked to address Kings fans.

"I got nothing but love for you. Thank you for all the memories. Thanks for dealing with this knucklehead for six-plus years, and I'll see you guys soon," Cousins said, via Jones.

Cousins will likely make his Pelicans debut Thursday night when they host the Houston Rockets.