DeMarcus Cousins Laughs, Says Draymond Green Told Him They'll Fight on Warriors

Golden State Warriors center DeMarcus Cousins said new teammate Draymond Green jokingly predicted they're going to fight each other during the 2018-19 NBA season. 

On Thursday, Cousins told Chris Haynes of ESPN he spoke with Green, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant before making the stunning decision to join the already star-studded Dubs as a free agent.

"Draymond probably had the worst pitch," he said. "He was like, 'Cous, I'm pretty sure me and you are going to fight.' I'm like, 'Draymond, Come on. Whoa. Whoa.' But Draymond, that's my guy. I respect him as a player, I respect him as a competitor. He's one of the top in this business and just his approach to every game, I want that guy on my team every day."

Cousins and Green are both known for their short fuses.

The Warriors power forward ranked second in the NBA in both technical fouls (15) and ejections (three) during the 2017-18 campaign.

Meanwhile, Cousins racked up 10 techs and two ejections in just 48 games for the New Orleans Pelicans last season before suffering a season-ending Achilles injury in January.

The 27-year-old University of Kentucky product's uncertain recovery from that major setback is the main reason he signed a modest one-year, $5.3 million contract with Golden State. He'll look to rebuild his value with the back-to-back champions before potentially entering the open market again next summer.

His partnership with Green in the post will be a crucial part of fitting in with the Dubs.

"So, we talked, we kind of communicated about what we both wanted, which was winning games," Cousins told ESPN. "He openly said he knows I wouldn't get as many touches and I don't give a ... I don't care. And the same thing for me. It's about winning the games. I think me and Draymond will mesh well."

Cousins added he hopes he'll complete his recovery and be ready to jump right into the starting lineup alongside Green, Curry, Durant and Klay Thompson when the regular season gets underway in October.