A main goal for the Golden State Warriors will be ensuring that DeMarcus Cousins fully recovers from his Achilles injury.
Last season, DeMarcus Cousins was perhaps the best big man in the entire NBA. His dominant performances on both offense and defense made him a nightmare for opposing teams. Before his injury, Cousins was averaging 25.2 points and 12.9 rebounds a game.
The four-time NBA All-Star shocked the world when he chose to sign with the Golden State Warriors. In many people’s eyes, the Warriors had just become invincible. Signing a player as valuable as Cousins would surely make the Dubs the greatest team of all time.
Well, on paper, this Warriors roster is the greatest squad of all time. They have an unprecedented five All-Stars. Two of which have won MVP awards and another is a former Defensive Player of the Year winner. An abundance of talent such as this has never been captured all on one team.
However, this stacked roster will come with a cost. Balancing team chemistry will become more difficult than ever before. Making sure every player’s ego remains in check could be nearly impossible. Sharing the ball between five stars is a task that only All-Star and Olympic teams have had to deal with.
Now, the Golden State Warriors will become the first team to attempt to make this type of roster work. If this wasn’t already enough of a challenge, they will also deal with the looming question of Cousins’ Achilles injury.
Cousins ruptured his Achilles midway through the 2017-18 NBA season. This is an injury that is notorious for being a career ender. Legends such as Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant both had their careers shortened by this injury.
At 27 years of age, Cousins has youth on his size. He is much younger than a majority of players that fell victim to this injury and he has every reason to be capable of overcoming it. Still, suffering an injury this severe is devastating. Not to mention that it is often more difficult for taller players to recover effectively.
This season, Cousins will be battling injuries as well as attempting to adjust to a drastically different system. Cousins has never been the fifth option on an NBA team. How he responds to this decreased role will be key to the Warriors season.
So, what should we expect from Cousins? Well, I would assume the Warriors are going to take it slow with him. They don’t want to force him back into the lineup before he is ready. Furthermore, easing him into the rotation will help reduce growing pains for the rest of the team.
Cousins will likely have one of his worst statistic seasons to date. He will not be relied on to score the ball nearly as much as in the past. However, if he plays his cards right, he could end the season as an NBA champion.