Rumors have emerged that DeMarcus Cousins could demand a trade to either the Cleveland Cavaliers or Chicago Bulls if the Sacramento Kings will continue to play poorly this coming season.

Cousins, 26, is entering his seventh season with the Kings since he was drafted fifth overall in 2010 and the team had never qualified for the playoffs in his entire career so far.

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Last season was the best they had with Cousins, so far, as the Kings placed third in the Pacific and 10th overall in the Western Conference with a 33-49 record, but still they were not able to advance in the postseason.

During their recent preseason games, they have seen that Dave Joerger can be effective in bringing out the best in Cousins as the new head coach's system is designed for the two-time All-NBA Second Teamer to become "more of a facilitator" while still being the number one option of the squad in offense.

Amid these reports, rumors that Cousins might be traded before next year's February deadline is persisting as there is no way of knowing whether the center's personal improvement will translate into wins for the Kings in the regular season.

With Sacramento's perennial failures with Cousins, the two-time NBA All-Star center has always been the subject of trade rumors since last summer, and the latest teams he is linked with are the Cavs and Bulls.

Sportsrageous reported that these trade rumors have gained more ground since the Kings selected big men Georgios Papagiannis and Skal Labissiere as the 13th and 28th overall picks of last June's draft. The report noted that "it seems awkward for the Kings to add players with the same position as 'Boogie' when they are actually in need of a backcourt boost".

Meanwhile, the Bottom Line News suggested two trade scenarios, one each with the Cavs and Bulls, which Sacramento could consider.

The first one is a direct swap between Cousins and Cleveland's Kevin Love, while the other one is sending Cousins to Chicago for Bobbie Portis, Doug Mcdermott, Nikola Mirotic and first-round draft pick Denzel Valentine.

It is not clear, though, if the Kings would allow any of the aforementioned scenarios as both deals appeared unfair for Sacramento. 

TagsNBA Trade Rumors, NBA Trade Rumors 2016, DeMarcus Cousins, sacramento kings, cleveland cavaliers, Chicago Bulls