As much as I'd like to believe it....I just can't. I have to believe that Karl not only accepts having Cousins on the team, but wants him there. He is a one of a kind asset...if the Kings are going to go anywhere, odds are that Cousins is the guy to lead the charge.
I think this is overlooked. People assuming Karl won't/can't coach cousins aren't giving him his due as a coach. It's similar in some ways to assuming Phil Jackson would've traded 2001 Shaq because he'd never coached a dominant back-to-the-basket center before.
I'm not sure I can swallow the 2015 George Karl and 1999 (I assume you meant 1999?) Phil Jackson comparison. On one hand we have a guy who has made it out of the first round once in his last 10 attempts. On the other, a guy who had already won 6 championships when he took over the Lakers.
That being said, I agree with you that if D'Alessandro has consulted Karl about Cousins, there's no way Karl advocated for a trade. It's pretty clear that he is obsessed with setting the all-time record for NBA wins (he wouldn't have taken the worst coaching gig in the NBA if he wasn't), and at his age he has to be in constant win-now mode. Trading superstars for other superstars is pretty much unheard of in the NBA, so they aren't going to get full return on any Cousins move until 2-3 years down the line. I can't believe that Karl would be very happy about that.