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The Whiteboard: Boogie Cousins is back and the league is doomed

By Ti Windisch

LOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 18: DeMarcus Cousins #0 of the Golden State Warriors is congratulated by Kevin Durant #35 and Draymond Green #23 after scoring a basket against Los Angeles Clippers during the first half at Staples Center on January 18, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - JANUARY 18: DeMarcus Cousins #0 of the Golden State Warriors is congratulated by Kevin Durant #35 and Draymond Green #23 after scoring a basket against Los Angeles Clippers during the first half at Staples Center on January 18, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images) /
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DeMarcus Cousins looked surprisingly spry in his first game back from a torn Achilles, which is bad news for all the NBA teams who aren’t the Golden State Warriors.

There were idiots (read: this writer) who figured DeMarcus Cousins would not add that much to the Golden State Warriors due to the severity of the torn Achilles he spent the first half of the season rehabbing from. As it turns out, reports of Boogie’s demise were greatly exaggerated.

Boogie did classic Boogie stuff in his debut with the Warriors on Friday, posting 14 points, six rebounds, three assists, one steal and one block in just 15 minutes played. He also fouled out, and made three of his four 3-point attempts.

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The sample size is too small to be really informative, but it’s still wild that Boogie is currently averaging 33.6 points, 14.4 rebounds, 7.2 assists, 2.4 steals and 2.4 blocks per 36 minutes right now.  Even a still-recovering version of Cousins is far and away better than the rest of Golden State’s center rotation. This is another advantage to a Warriors team that already added the ultimate trump card that Kevin Durant is to a core that won 73 games the season before.

Golden State now starts Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Kevin Durant, Draymond Green and Boogie Cousins. No other team comes close to the amount of star power on the Warriors’ roster, and that was true even before factoring in Cousins! He’ll probably only spend a season in Golden State before getting a better contract elsewhere, but this season is all but a wrap if Cousins is going to play this well with the Warriors.

Give credit where it’s due: this move was yet another good one by Bob Myers and the Warriors. There was real talk of Golden State falling apart at this point in their dynastic run due to chemistry concerns. Boogie Cousins is bringing new energy to the Warriors, and the joy of watching him bounce back might do even more for Golden State than his actual play will. Good luck to everybody else, as it seems the league will need it to overcome these Dubs.

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