DeMarcus Cousins hits back after Ronnie2K labels him ‘a d***’ ahead of tournament

An NBA star was unwittingly dragged into an ugly social media feud before he delivered a savage return that left users applauding.

DeMarcus Cousins hit back at Ronnie 2K.

The NBA is dealing with the coronavirus shutdown by preparing to host a 16-player field of NBA players in an NBA 2K20 tournament set to air on ESPN.

But just days before the tournament is set to get underway, the public face of the 2K video game found himself at the centre of social media backlash.

Ronnie Singh, known to the basketball community as Ronnie 2K, was on a live stream discussing the tournament when he clearly forgot he was still on and dissed star big man DeMarcus Cousins.

"Cousins is such a d**k. I could see him just being like, 'I don't wanna f***ing' do this.' Not to mention his matchup would be annoyed too," Ronnie2K said.

The remark quickly whipped around social media before it quickly captured the attention of Cousins who is set to take on Andre Drummond in the opening round of the tournament.

@Ronnie2K pic.twitter.com/DQOrfyEigN

— DeMarcus Cousins (@boogiecousins) April 1, 2020

Singh responded to the tweet from Cousins and apologised profusely for the remark.

“Bro in a moment of work stress, I said something super dumb that wasn’t at all how I feel about you. My bad & I sincerely apologise. Let’s have some fun starting this weekend, bring the action and see if you can be crowned champ,” he wrote.

Kevin Durant and Trae Young are set to lead the field of 16-players.

The NBA, the players’ association and 2K announced the NBA 2K Players Tournament on Wednesday with play to begin Saturday. The winner of the week-long competition will receive a $100,000 donation to a coronavirus-related relief effort of their choice.

Player have been seeded according to their NBA 2K player rating – from Durant’s 96 down to Derrick Jones Jr.’s 78 – and tenure. Durant, the Brooklyn Nets star who sat out this NBA season due to injury, will face Jones in the first game Saturday. Other matches will air on ESPN2. The championship is set for April 11.

2K Player Ratings determine seeds 👀

Which NBA players do you think will be the best at 2K? #NBA2KTourney pic.twitter.com/e6CvfT9Xhg

— NBA 2K20 (@NBA2K) April 1, 2020

Participants will each select a pool of eight teams prior to the tournament and can only play with each club once throughout the tournament. Rounds one and two will be single elimination, and the semi-finals and finals will be best-of-three. The other match-ups include Young vs. Harrison Barnes, Hassan Whiteside vs. Pat Beverley, Donovan Mitchell vs. Rui Hachimura, Devin Booker vs. Michael Porter Jr., Andre Drummond vs. DeMarcus Cousins, Zach LaVine vs. Deandre Ayton and Montrezl Harrell vs. Domantas Sabonis.

The NBA has been shut down since March 12, the day that Utah centre Rudy Gobert became the first player in the league to have a positive diagnosis for the virus revealed. The league is still discussing scenarios for resuming play once allowed.

– with wires

Originally published as DeMarcus Cousins hits back after Ronnie2K labels him ‘a d***’ ahead of tournament