Los Angeles Lakers: 11 realistic stars to target heading into the summer

DeMarcus Cousins, Golden State Warriors (free agent)

There’s another Warrior that will be hitting the open free agent market this summer, and that is none other than DeMarcus Cousins (who will miss the remainder of the post-season with a quad injury). Last summer, Cousins elected against a long-term contract to sign a one-year prove-it deal with the Warriors.

The hope was that he would prove that he could recover from his torn Achilles injury and cash-in this summer for the contract that he believed he was worth. That, however, was thrown out the window when he injured himself in Game 2 against the Clippers.

At this point, it’s really tough to gauge what the market will be for Cousins this summer, but if he elects to take another one-year – or shorter termed – prove-it deal, the Lakers could jump in and potentially couple Cousins with another big-name star to play next to LeBron.