DeMarcus Cousins Signs Taiwan Beer Leopards Contract; Eyed NBA Return Last Season

Four-time NBA All-Star DeMarcus Cousins signed a contract with the Taiwan Beer Leopards of the T1 League and is set to make his debut for the team next month.

"We're confident that with [Cousins's] all-around skills, he'll bring a totally new chemistry to the Leopards," CEO Johnny Chang said in a press release.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Cousin signed a 10-day contract, which will cover four games:

Cousins is set to join the Leonards in January and make his on-court debut Jan. 20.

The 33-year-old has not appeared in an NBA game since the 2021-22 season with the Denver Nuggets. He most recently played for the Guaynabo Mets of the Baloncesto Superior Nacional League in Puerto Rico, leading them to the semifinals in their playoff tournament.

A torn Achilles suffered during the 2017-18 season completely derailed what could have been a Hall of Fame career for Cousins. He was averaging 25.2 points, 12.9 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game while emerging as a quality three-point shooter for the New Orleans Pelicans when he went down.

While we've seen several athletes find their way back to form post-Achilles injury in recent years, Cousins joined an even longer list of players who could never find their past form. He spent one year with the Golden State Warriors in 2018-19 and then suffered a torn ACL in 2019 after signing with the Los Angeles Lakers. The 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons saw him bounce around to four teams (Rockets, Clippers, Bucks and Nuggets) while largely looking like a shell of his former self.

Cousins' injuries not only cost him the back of half of what was going to be a stellar career but likely nine figures in salary. He was an impending free agent set to sign a massive new deal before tearing his Achilles and then never made more than $5.3 million in a season the remainder of his NBA career post-injury.

A return to the NBA is likely not in Cousins' future at this point, but his presence will undoubtedly create headlines in Taiwan. Former NBA All-Star Dwight Howard signed with the Leopards last season, winning the Most Valuable Import award.