DeMarcus Cousins strategically placed himself in the Warriors’ circle as a free agent last summer in hopes of winning his first NBA championship. Golden State lost to the Toronto Raptors, 110-114, in Game 6 of the NBA Finals.
Despite the failed attempt at helping the Warriors to a three-peat, Boogie says the journey this past year has had an impact on him.
“I learned a lot about myself, obviously I learned a lot about the game, the business, just everything all in one,” Cousins said.
He returned to the court January 18 after being out for a year with an Achilles injury. In the first round of playoffs, and his first-ever playoff appearance with a team, Cousins suffered a torn quad against the Los Angeles Clippers.
Determined to leave his mark on the season, he fought his way back to play in the NBA Finals against the Raptors. In Game 5, Cousins stepped up with 14 points and three boards in 20 minutes of action.
In the Game 6 loss to Toronto, Cousins played 19 minutes, scored 12 points and recorded five boards, two assists and one block. Boogie was aggressive and looked as good as he’s looked all season.
Throughout the 30 games he played during the regular season with the Warriors, he averaged 16.3 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.5 blocks in 25.7 minutes.
A mid-level exception got Boogie Cousins from New Orleans to Golden State. Cousins took a substantial pay cut ($5.3 million contract for one season down from $18 million) figuring it would be worth it for a serious shot at the Larry O’Brien trophy.
“I’ve grown as a player, I’ve grown as a person. I’m grateful for every moment that happened throughout the season. That being said, this is one to remember for sure,” Cousins said.
He talked about the ups and downs of his NBA season, noting the successes were overcoming the obstacles:
The low point is the injury and you know, all of that. The high point is overcoming all those moments. It was a lot of them, not even just for myself personally just even things we had to overcome as a team. So all that, overcoming those obstacles, those were the highlights.
