3 Daniel Theis replacements the Boston Celtics must consider this summer

Boston Celtics target No. 3) DeMarcus Cousins

Since the Sacramento Kings traded him to the New Orleans Pelicans in 2017, DeMarcus Cousins has spent the majority of his time bouncing around the league. He went to Golden State, the Houston Rockets, the Los Angeles Clippers, the Milwaukee Bucks, and lastly the Denver Nuggets.

Serving as the backup center to the two-time Most Valuable Player Nikola Jokic, Cousins performed well above his expectations. In 31 regular-season games with the Nuggets, he averaged 8.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, and 1.7 assists on 45.6 percent shooting from the field.

In the five-game series against Golden State, those numbers improved to 10.6 points, 3.4 boards, and 1.2 assists at an astounding 65.5 percent clip.

Even though he never returned to the All-NBA talent he was in Sacramento and New Orleans (prior to his torn Achilles injury), Cousins has persevered to show he can play a key role on a title contender, especially on the offensive end.

While his defense and ability to stay on the court without getting into foul trouble (averaging 3.7 fouls per game throughout his career) remain question marks for any team, the biggest positive Cousins brings is his inside game.

He can bully mismatches inside the paint via post-ups to assert his dominance there, box out to get offensive rebounds for easy second-chance shots (which he averaged 1.6 offensive rebounds throughout the 2021-22 campaign), and can make occasional 3-pointers to help his team stretch the floor when needed.

While the Boston Celtics can acquire Cousins via the veteran’s minimum in free agency, they could bump it up to the $6.4 million Mid-Level Exception while giving him a bigger opportunity with playing more minutes and competing for the NBA title.