Demarcus Cousins enjoyed returning to UK to work at a youth basketball camp. (Victoria Graff photo)
By LARRY VAUGHT
LEXINGTON  Being back at the John Calipari Pro Camp certainly was a labor of love for DeMarcus Cousins.
“It’s fun coming back to Kentucky. It’s something I always enjoy. I consider this home,†said Cousins, the No. 5 pick by Sacramento in the NBA draft in June after his stellar freshman season at Kentucky.
He was back in Lexington Thursday working at the first day of Calipari’s three-day camp that will feature No. 1 draft pick John Wall Friday and first-round picks Patrick Patterson and Eric Bledsoe both Saturday.
“I walked in the gym when I got here (Wednesday) and John was dripping sweat,†Cousins said during a break between the two sold-out camp sessions at Memorial Coliseum. “I plan to play a little bit while I’m here.â€Â
Demarcus Cousins showed some of his moves at a UK youth basketball camp. (Victoria Graff photo)
Cousins hasn’t backed off his belief that he should have gone higher than the No. 5 pick and admitted he was disappointed he didn’t get to play against more teams that passed on him during the NBA summer league in Las Vegas.
“I think I started strong, but ended bad (in summer league),†Cousins said. “I made a lot of rookie mistakes. The summer league does not get the credit it deserves. There are some name players in it.
“I do play with a chip on my shoulder. I want to prove every doubter wrong. Every time I play, I am trying to prove someone wrong.â€Â
Of course, there has been talk since the draft that the Sacramento Kings got a steal with Cousins at No. 5.
“Make up your mind. Either love me or hate me,†Cousins joked.
He says Sacramento and Lexington are similar size cities and both only have one basketball team for fans to support.
DeMarcus Cousins, who plays with the Sacramento Kings, signs autographs at UK youth basketball camp. (Victoria Graff photo)
“There’s a lot of love. It’s an easy place to adjust to,†he said. “I love the fans backing me up. That makes me go even harder. I appreciate it (the support). We had a pep rally after the draft and it was about 1,000 degrees outside and the fans were still there.
“We have a young team, but if we work hard I really think we can do some damage this year.â€Â
Cousins says he has felt like he has been on a plane every other day since the draft .
“You are your own business. You determine how far you go. If you get lazy, you will be out of the league,†Cousins said.
Cousins says he has lost weight since leaving Kentucky and will continue to work on conditioning.
“They say you can never be too conditioned,†Cousins said.
Cousins also indicated he could never be too grateful when it comes to repaying his mother. He bought her a new house in Alabama before coming to Lexington.
“I owe her the world,†Cousins said. “Just giving back to her felt good. She got all emotional, but I wanted to do this.â€Â
He also wants to continue coming back to Kentucky all he can. He constantly watched highlights flashing on a TV screen during his eight-minute press conference.
“It seems like just yesterday we were doing that and now I am gone,†he said. “Man, I wish I was still here. I love this place. I wish I could still be here.
“I will come back as much as possible. I miss this place. I wish I could even take classes.â€Â
Cousins flashed that playful grin after the comment about the classes, but he emphasized Kentucky would be home to him now.
One other thing that has not changed is that he still does not have a driver’s license.
“I am still working on that. I don’t want to kill anybody on the road,†he said.
14 Responses to Cousins already misses Kentucky
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One of the things that make Cuz so likeable is that he can get totally focused on a game and play hard, but still have a sense of humor and flash that infectous grin. I hope he never loses that sense of humor.
We miss you too DeMarcus,but sometimes you have to do what you have to do. You just get in there and prove all those people wrong, we have faith that you can do just that!You maybe a King now but you will always be a CAT!!!
Nice of you to get your mom a new house, I heard that John did the same for his mom. All of you guys are close to your families and that is what makes you the kind of young men you are,We are PROUD of all of you.
Hope you do come back to Kentucky as often as possible and we get to hear from you, Maybe you can let Larry know how you are doing from time to time and he will pass it on to us.
GOOD LUCK!! Go Cats, and Go Kings
Kids were really enjoying him today
He was a perfect fit for UK and the BBN. Not sure any player I’ve met(and I have met alot) made me laugh and smile as much. He is a natural born comedian, a big kid in a mans body. My wife’s favorite guy. And he is truly going to be missed. As Larry said the kids love him.
KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK. GO BLUE AND ENJOY THE HEAT BECAUSE IT AINT GOING ANYWHERE SOON
Ah, Demarcus, I want you back too! I got tears in may eyes reading this. Can you take me back to Sacremento with you for awhile. Then ship me to Houston with Patrick for awhile then to Eric for a while and then to DC with John for a while? I met Ali, I met Mickey Mantle and if you could do that for me, I could die happy! Thanks for the memories, these will last me a lifetime no matter what future teams will accomplish! Have a good life and remember, KEEP SMILING! GO CATS!
Just saw on another site that the Kings have hired Cousin’s high school coach as an assistant to the coach,story says it is a good hire because it will be a face from home for him since he is out on the west coast. Also says it shows how much the Kings want things to work out with Cousins.
I think it is good because now he will have someone he knows and trusts to talk things over with, help him make good decisions.
if yall didn’t see the interview, try to watch it. he’s so funny. i can’t believe how people didn’t like him. morons. he’s going to be the next shaq if he wants. he’s got the personality. just hope he doesn’t make crappy movies and makes his free throws. The kings hired one of Cuzs HS coaches. so that should be great for him.
I really loved all those guys, but I think I will miss Cousins the most because of his personality.(and maybe all those double doubles)He has the talent and I think he will make us all very proud!!!( in fact I think they will all make us very proud)
Cuz, was just a big ole teddy bear. He was such a lovable little thing. He was a work in progress. You couldn’t help but love him, he was like you own son. We all watched him have a couple temper tantrums, strut his stuff, show off, crack some jokes, smile, lose a tooth, find his style and be pushed from the nest. I still just wanna cry! GO CATS!
where’s the link to the interview?
Great move by the Kings to hire his coach. He came to watch DeMarcus play a lot last year.
Think the interview is posted at UK athletics
its on Youtube.
put “Cousins still cant get enough of kentucky” in the search engine and it should pull it up.
if you put “Hot Italin Bathroom Love” in, well, the state of Ky is represented in that as well.
AH Nashville Cat, you are on a roll, gave me a good laugh this morning, keep it up, looks like it is going to be a long day and I’m going to need to laugh ALOT!!!
NashvilleCat, you just made me laugh for the first time today, felt a little bad realizing next week is my last week of work before I am put out to pasture, hung on the wall, thrown in the trash, v.62 is obsolete, left to rust, etc. I really needed that laugh, the tears today were for me and not for losing ‘my’ boys but now I feel better. You need a website. I saw a good remark today about a testicular foul on the Huffington Post site. Get a website, a blog or something so we can see your genius… I still want to know where Jim Boyer is hiding. I hope he is OK.