BASKETBALL/Former NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins to arrive in Taiwan Thursday

Taipei, Jan. 16 (CNA) Four-time NBA all-star DeMarcus Cousins will arrive in Taiwan on Thursday night ahead of his debut with the Taiwan Beer Leopards of the professional basketball T1 LEAGUE on Saturday, the franchise announced Tuesday.

Cousins is scheduled to arrive on flight CI5 from Los Angeles at 9:30 p.m. on Thursday at Taoyuan International Airport Terminal 2, the Leopards said in a social media post Tuesday, inviting fans to show up with their Cousins memorabilia to welcome him.

A press conference introducing the 2010 NBA draft's fifth overall pick will be held at 7 p.m. on Friday at Sheraton Taoyuan Hotel, but there will be no official live stream of the event, the franchise told CNA Tuesday.

Cousins is expected to make his T1 LEAGUE debut on Saturday against the Tainan TSG GhostHawks at Taoyuan Arena at 2 p.m. and then play the defending champion New Taipei CTBC DEA on Sunday at 7 p.m., also on the Leopards' home court in Taoyuan.

The Leopards initially announced the signing of Cousins to a short-term contract on Dec. 18, 2023, indicating that he would participate in the team's four home games on Jan. 20, 21, 27, and 28.

A tweet by ESPN insider Adrian Wojnarowski following the announcement suggested it was a 10-day deal over a four-game period.

On Dec. 19, however, Leopards CEO Johnny Chang (張建偉) denied that in an interview with CNA, saying it was a month-long contract and that the franchise planned to renew Cousins' contract month-by-month based on his chemistry with the team.

"In addition to chemistry, it [was signed this way] due to [Cousins'] personal concerns and his concerns for his family," Chang said.

The Leopards signed Dwight Howard to a contract covering nearly the entire 2022-23 season, but after going 6-24 while Howard was with the club, the team seems to be taking a more cautious approach with their new NBA target.

Nicknamed "Boogie," the 208-centimeter big man recorded 19.6 points and 10.2 rebounds in his decade-plus NBA career, which eventually was derailed by serious injuries.

Following steady progress in his first three seasons, Cousins averaged over 20 points per game for seven straight seasons from 2013 to 2018.

After he tore his left Achilles tendon in January 2018, however, he needed almost a year to recover. He suffered another season-ending injury when he tore his left quadriceps in April 2019.

Despite his effort to return to the court with the Los Angeles Lakers, he tore the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee during a practice in August 2019, and was sidelined for the entire 2019-20 season.

Cousins joined the Toronto Raptors in 2020 but changed teams five times in the next two seasons, with his minutes played per game mostly around 15 and points per game never reaching double figures again. He played his last NBA games during the 2021-2022 season.

The Leopards are currently on a four-game winning streak, sitting second in the T1 LEAGUE with an 8-4 record. They are 0.5 games behind the DEA and 0.5 games ahead of the Kaohsiung Aquas.

The team unexpectedly relieved head coach Michael Olson of his duties on Jan. 13 and has had franchise consultant Jhou Jyun-san (周俊三) serve as the acting head coach since then.

According to Chief Operating Officer Johnny Yen (顏行書), the team is actively seeking a non-Taiwanese head coach.