Golden State Warriors: DeMarcus Cousins could return for Game 1 of Finals

Nothing is certain, but the expectation is that Golden State Warriors center DeMarcus Cousins will return for Game 1 of the 2019 NBA Finals.

The Golden State Warriors may get DeMarcus Cousins back for Game 1 of the Finals which would be a surprising turn of events. Cousins started 30 games for the two-time defending champs during the regular season.

Cousins, who went down with a left quad tear in Game 2 of the Warriors opening series against the LA Clippers, wasn’t supposed to be back this postseason. However, as the NBA gods would have it, the big man is set to return.

Per Yahoo! Sports, Cousins could return for the start of the Finals and has completed his first on-court practice. This is huge for the center that had aspirations to return during the Warriors’ run in the Western Conference Finals.

Cousins was prepared for the rehab, but even he wasn’t expecting to back this postseason. According to the same report, Cousins thought it was “worse” than it turned out to be.

"“Initially, I thought it was worse than what it was,” Cousins said. “There was obviously a panic, but once the doctors came out and I realized what it was, I gathered myself from a couple of days of frustration, anger, sadness and all of the above. I told myself to get back to work and do it all over again. That’s what I did, and that’s what I’ll continue to do.”"

The initial thought following the prognosis was that Cousins could return during the WCFs.

However, Kerr immediately shot that down as neither Cousins or Kevin Durant had quite returned to on-court activities. The timeline for superstar Kevin Durant is still unknown, but he is expected to miss Game 1 of the Finals.

That said, in the absence of Cousins, Kevon Looney has stepped up immensely. His activity and dominance helped the Warriors both take down the Rockets and sweep the Trail Blazers. He was key for the Warriors in both series, especially after the injury to Durant.

What’s better than just Looney though is the tag team of Looney and Cousins.

Looney, without Durant as an option, has started to center and created a different version of the death lineup. Looney isn’t a true offensive threat, so Cousins would bring a different dynamic to this offense with his shooting and low-post playmaking.

Scoring 16.3 points per game and securing 8.2 rebounds per game during the regular season, Cousins deserves a shot at being a real asset during the Finals. His career has been shredded by two major injuries.

This could be Cousins reward for all his hard work and determination to get back on the court. He’s earned this chance, so let’s hope it’s finally awarded to him.