Cousins 'absolutely' wants to stay in Sacramento; George Karl and Vlade Divac reportedly at odds

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The buildup to the NBA draft and upcoming free-agency period has taken a backseat to another topic of discussion as of late, one not many people saw coming.

Among those surprised about the recent DeMarcus Cousins trade rumors is Cousins himself.

Related: Report - Lakers, Kings discussing potential trade involving DeMarcus Cousins

As rumors tend to swirl vigorously around this time of year, few could have predicted that the Sacramento Kings would even contemplate parting ways with their franchise player. After all, 2014-15 was the first year of a four-year, $62-million deal Cousins signed not too long ago.

With such a dizzying amount of hearsay coming from all directions, Cousins took to Twitter on Wednesday to confirm his commitment to the franchise that selected him with the fifth pick in the 2010 draft.

Shortly after the tweet, reports surfaced that the Kings and Los Angeles Lakers "exchanged possible frameworks" for a trade involving Cousins - this after rumors flooded the Internet claiming head coach George Karl is involved, if not behind, the efforts to move the big man.

On Thursday, a pair of tweets surfaced from The Sacramento Bee's Jason Jones and Sports Illustrated's Chris Mannix indicating that the messy ordeal has created tension within the upper ranks of the organization, particularly between team owner Vivek Ranadive and Karl.

If the reports are true, they do not bode well for the Kings. Ranadive fired former head coach Mike Malone - the only bench boss to get through to Cousins throughout his five years in the league - a month and a half into this past season. The team's record was a respectable 11-13 at the time of Malone's dismissal.

On Tuesday, Cousins' initial response to learning of Karl's potential role in a movement to trade him was cryptic, curt and telling. Days later, Cousins again vented on social media.

Kings vice president Vlade Divac all but guaranteed last week that Cousins won't be traded. Ranadive then reiterated his lack of desire to move his All-Star big man.

Karl somewhat ambiguously stated that he wants Cousins to remain in a Kings uniform only if the 24-year-old center "comes committed."

With Cousins locked up through 2017-18 and seemingly committed to the team, the ball is in Sacramento's proverbial court. Late Thursday afternoon, USA Today's Sam Amick reported that there is "zero chance" of the Kings firing Karl in the near future. It was also reported by ESPN's Marc Stein that most internal displeasure with Karl is coming from Divac, and not Ranadive.