DeMarcus Cousins Selected to USA Basketball Team for 2016 Rio Olympics

Sacramento Kings big man DeMarcus Cousins will reportedly play for Team USA at the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

According to Marc J. Spears of ESPN’s The Undefeated, Cousins was “told he has earned a roster spot.” Jason Jones of the Sacramento Bee confirmed the report.

Cousins is worthy of the roster spot based on his statistical production alone.

He averaged a career-high 26.9 points and grabbed 11.5 rebounds per game this season as a double-double threat every time he took the floor. He also provided rim protection for the Kings with 1.4 blocks per game.

The two-time All-Star earned second-team All-NBA honors in each of the last two seasons as one of the best big men in the league. Cousins will give the Americans an offensive playmaker on the block and a defensive force on the interior who can clean up the glass and protect the basket against international competition.

Team USA lists a number of big men as roster finalists on its official website: LaMarcus Aldridge, Andre Drummond, Anthony Davis, Kenneth Faried, Blake Griffin, Dwight Howard and DeAndre Jordan. However, Bill Leopold of NBCOlympics.com noted Davis, Griffin and Aldridge have all withdrawn from the Olympics because of injuries, leaving a need for Cousins.

The Kings star didn’t play in the 2012 Olympics but was part of the roster for the 2014 FIBA Basketball World Cup in Spain, where the Americans won the title contest over Serbia.

Cousins played in all nine games and averaged 9.8 points and 5.7 rebounds per contest. Most impressively, he led the team in field-goal percentage at 70.8 percent (34-of-48 shooting) and took advantage of openings created by ball-handlers such as Stephen Curry, James Harden and Kyrie Irving.

Cousins’ inclusion comes at a time of roster questions for Team USA. Curry, the NBA's reigning MVP, will skip the Olympics as he recovers from ankle and knee injuries, per Warriors PR, and Marcus Thompson of the San Jose Mercury News reported LeBron James and Andre Iguodala are both thinking about skipping the event because of concerns about the Zika virus in Brazil.

Russell Westbrook issued a statement Friday saying he will miss the Olympics as well, per NBA.com.

Spain’s Pau Gasol also said he isn’t sure if he will attend the Olympics because of Zika concerns, per Tales Azzoni of the Associated Press.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention listed Brazil’s Zika problem as a Level 2 concern and noted those who go should “practice enhanced precautions” when entering and leaving the country.

While a number of the world’s premier basketball players are still thinking about whether they will take the court in Brazil, the Americans apparently want Cousins to be part of their efforts to defend their gold medal from the 2012 Olympics in London.