Golden State Warriors big man DeMarcus Cousins has said that his goal is to return before the 2019 NBA playoffs are over. During an interview with The Undefeated, Cousins said he expects his season will have a "very nice ending."
"For me, my goal is I ain't planning on sitting," Cousins said. "I don't know the reality of it. But for me, that is not what I'm planning on doing. ... It's definitely some type of bad movie. But I think it will have a very nice ending. Just wait for it."
Cousins suffered a torn quad during the Warriors' Game 2 loss in the first round against the Los Angeles Clippers, and though he didn't need surgery to repair the injury, the team had previously noted that it was unlikely he would return in the postseason.
While Cousins is aiming for a return to on-court action soon, he's not particularly close, and the same goes for veteran forward Kevin Durant, who suffered a strained calf against the Rockets.
"I think everyone needs to slow down a little bit on the Kevin stuff," Warriors head coach Steve Kerr said Monday afternoon. "He hasn't even stepped on the floor yet ... DeMarcus is probably similar. He hasn't had any live stuff on the court yet. He's not that close either. Hopefully, another week goes by and he'll get better and now we have a better prognosis but at this point, we're getting ready for this series without both of them.
"I guess now that'll be the headline: 'Kerr says it's unlikely DeMarcus will return.' We evaluate week to week but if a guy hasn't had any live action the day before the first game of a series it's tough to see that turning around quickly."
Though he might not necessarily be close to a comeback at this point in time, Kerr has previously indicated that a return this postseason was a possibility for Cousins. Via the Mercury News:
Warriors coach Steve Kerr shared some encouraging news on the likelihood centers DeMarcus Cousins and Damian Jones could return at some point during the NBA playoffs.
"It's a possibility he could be back. Same with DeMarcus," Kerr said on Sunday. "He's coming along pretty well. We'll just wait and see."
Kerr said that Cousins has made "normal progression" after tearing a left quadricep muscle in his left leg in Game 2 of the Warriors-Clippers first-round series on April 24. After receiving clearance to complete spot-up shooting drills last week, Cousins traveled with the Warriors on their trip to Houston for Game 3 (Saturday) and Game 4 (Monday). During that time, Cousins completed spot shooting drills after morning shootaround and sat with the team on the bench.
Cousins and Durant have both been officially ruled out of Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals against the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday night.
