Cousins was injured and left the court at the last moment of the game against Rockets . After examination, he was diagnosed with a complete tear of the left Achilles tendon. Not only did the game be reimbursed, but he may also need to recuperate for 6 to 10 months.
That is to say, Cousins can only recover from health when training camp begins next season, which will affect Cousins' summer contract. Cousins' four-year, $65.61 million contract expires in the summer of 2018. This season, he averaged 25.2 points, 12.9 rebounds, 5.3 assists, 1.6 steals and 1.5 blocks per game. Under the leadership of his Thick Brow, the Pelicans are now ranked sixth in the Western Conference with 27 wins and 21 losses.
Cousins' injury, for the Pelicans, the situation in playoffs, changed drastically, with only one single core, they are indeed not sure to make it to the playoffs. For Cousins, an accidental injury may affect the summer contract. The Pelicans originally planned to sign a large contract with Cousins with an annual salary of more than $30 million in five years, but his injury may affect the Pelicans' decision.
In fact, when Cousins was healthy, the Pelicans also intended to enhance their outside strength through trading before All-Star this year, in order to go further in the playoffs. Now Cousins is injured, and the Pelicans' intention to trade remains unchanged, but the trading idea has changed now. After Cousins is missing from Cousins, the Pelicans are not sure to enter the playoffs by relying on Thick Brows. Therefore, the direction of their trading may change. They originally wanted to increase their outside strength, but now they need to increase their inside strength.
The Pelicans also mentioned the problems Cousins needs to face after being injured. One is the Pelicans' playoffs, the second is the issue of Cousins' contract renewal in the summer, the third is the issue of playing time for the remaining games of Davis, and the other is the issue of the Pelicans' need to use trades to alleviate the impact of Cousins' injury on the team.
Originally, the Pelicans had two inside towers, which was a huge threat to the Western Conference team. Now small balls are popular. Whether it is , Warriors, , or the Rockets, they are all teams like them. The Rockets lost to the Pelicans today. There is no Cousins now, and the two towers are disintegrated, and the Pelicans' future ideas also need to be determined, should they find a helper for Davis or make up for the strength of the outside line.
In short, Cousins' injury has had a huge impact on the situation of the Western Conference playoffs, and the other is that it will also affect his contract renewal in the summer. After the Pelicans lost the God of the Gods Test, their situation in the West is not optimistic.
