Updated: October 28, 2012, 7:23 am ET

Cousins Isn’t Your Typical NBA Center

By HOOPSWORLD
Basketball News & NBA Rumors

What good is a center in today’s NBA?

It’s difficult to say, when the NBA doesn’t even distinguish centers on the All-Star ballot anymore.

Don’t be fooled. Big men still matter in the association. If centers weren’t important, teams wouldn’t have been willing to break the bank this offseason to acquire Dwight Howard.

Nor would there be intrigue about DeMarcus Cousins. The Kings’ third-year player is part of the new age of centers who do not want to be defined only by their post play.

“Some days I play like a guard; some days I play like a big man,” Cousins said. “And my biggest problem is trying to mesh those games together each game. That’s something that I’ve got to continue to work on, but it’s going to take time.”

“He’s a curse to himself because he can do multiple things,” Smart said. “So rather than just settling into one area, he can do other things. If he couldn’t shoot beyond eight feet he probably wouldn’t focus more beyond eight feet. Because he can shoot it, because he can pass it, because he can dribble it, he becomes a hindrance to himself a little bit at this stage of his career.”

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