Cousins, Favors Come to Campaign
By Ben Couch
June 21, 2010
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J.—The campaign materials, video and word-of-mouth lay out the cases, but sometimes, you just need to see someone up close. See how they size up, how they react, what kind of impression they leave you with live. Workouts serve as the capstone piece of this month-long draft puzzle, and no decision for the Nets seems as crucial as their likely choice between big men DeMarcus Cousins (Kentucky) and Derrick Favors (Georgia Tech).
Cousins’ former teammate, point guard John Wall, has been the probable No. 1 pick since the season started, reinforcing that status with stellar play. The collegiate National Player of the Year, Ohio State swingman Evan Turner, is widely expected to follow. That leaves the Nets, third pick in their possession, with options that will determine the fates of franchises to follow. Syracuse small forward Wesley Johnson – who worked out at the PNY Center on Thursday – will be discussed, but if the big men are available, the Nets’ desire to find Brook Lopez a long-term post partner will make it hard to pass on both.
Yet they must choose one over the other, and that meant bringing Favors and Cousins to the PNY Center in for a final viewing, even after establishing in-person contact during interviews at the Chicago combine. The 6-foot-11, 289-pound Cousins needed to show his potential at power forward, offering the Nets a chance to project his ability to slot alongside Lopez without offering opponents an offensive mismatch every trip down the floor. Favors – wee of age (18), though mammoth in still-growing stature (6-10, 246) – was in-house so the Nets could examine his NBA-readiness against the imposing, competitive physical force Cousins has proven to be at the college level.
With the hour-long workout behind them, Nets director of player personnel Gregg Polinsky explained that … both impressed. He praised the team’s staff for putting Cousins and Favors through a session that showed “the full menu” of each player’s abilities, first while fresh and then while worn out.
“It would have made it easier if one guy came in and did very little and you were extremely disappointed,” Polinsky explained. “But we are not disappointed. I think we all walked out of here going these are going to be two very fine NBA players going down the road.”
So Cousins can play the 4?
“I think it’s obvious that he’s a very skilled basketball player who’s got a high IQ, very intuitive, been well-coached at Kentucky with Cal. He can step up and shoot the basketball. What I would say is you leave that to your coach. They will have a scheme and how they want to play guys. They know your personnel and you go from there.”
And Favors seems more mobile?
“Even though Cousins is 289 pounds and Favors is 246 on our scale, they’re both really light on their feet. What you get with Cousins is a little more power. What you get with Favors is a little more pop (athleticism). Both will work.”
Glad we cleared that up, ha.
Were the Nets to opt for Cousins, they’ll have to rework his game. The Alabama native indicated he prefers playing power forward, even though he’s admittedly more comfortable at center after spending a year banging inside for Kentucky coach John Calipari. According to the Web site SynergySports, Cousins generated 89.2 percent of his offense in halfcourt sets, with 36.3 percent coming on post-ups, 22 percent on put-backs and 15.8 percent on cuts to the basket – all at point-per-possession (PPP) rates that rank “good” or “very good” among last year’s Division I men’s basketball players.
Of Cousins’ 545 offensive possessions, only 40 were spot-ups (2.9%), pick-and-rolls (2.0%), isolations (1.8%) or coming off screens (0.6%) – at much less favorable PPP levels than his peers, albeit in a small sample. By comparison, Favors worked 53 such attempts into his 387 possessions – 13.8 percent of his total, including 20 pick-and-rolls. Favors’ post game is less refined (0.844 PPP, 63rd percentile, “Good”), though he boasts superior transition skills, producing 1.290 PPP (84th percentile, “Excellent”) vs. Cousins’ 1.119 (63rd, “Good”).
Cousins’ frame and post prowess are better suited toward immediate NBA contributions, with a nearly 7-foot-6 wingspan that will help him provide a shot-altering presence from the jump. He averaged 15.1 points, 9.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks in just 23.5 minutes while winning the SEC’s Freshman of the Year Award, though the limited minutes raised conditioning questions the Nets seem to believe Cousins has answered. Polinsky also said Cousins proved able to shoot comfortably out to 20 feet and could stretch that range further with time, which would prove key to playing alongside a low-post presence like Lopez.
Yet Cousins was set to return to Kentucky until Calipari redirected him during a postseason conversation.
“To be honest, I didn’t think I was coming out this year,” Cousins said. “I was going to play another year. We had that talk with Cal and now I’m here. Basically he said, ‘If you want to feed my family and help support my family, you stay; if you want to help yours ...’”
Favors’ shot remains a self-acknowledged “work-in-progress” that Polinsky said was solid out to 15-16 feet. And though Favors is still developing physically, he stands to bulk up, and expressed knowledge that the weight room will be the first place he heads upon being drafted. League executives are tantalized by the possibility of the Atlanta native’s 7-foot-4 wingspan and 35 ½-inch vertical, which combined to help Favors average 12.5 points, 8.4 rebounds and 2.1 blocks in 27.5 minutes while earning recognition as the ACC’s Rookie of the Year.
“I think my defense and rebounding are ready, but it’s just a matter of how much hard work I put in, to see how long it’ll take my (offensive) game to get ready for the NBA,” Favors said.
With the Draft approaching, the duo is just days away from finding out exactly how much each impressed the Nets and the other two teams they’ve worked out for in tandem (Philadelphia and Sacramento). Yet neither is surprised that they’re being pitted head-to-head in debates: a friendly, competitive, can-you-top-this rivalry began early in high school.
“To be honest, we’ve been in competition our whole career,” Cousins said. “It was always, ‘Who’s better – me or Derrick?’ After college, I thought those days were pretty much over, but we’re back at stage 1.”
Thursday night at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York, a stage will be underfoot. Either Favors or Cousins will walk it first, and the Nets could be the ones making the call.
Cousins Video
Favors Video
