Lakers Rumors: DeMarcus Cousins could return for Finals push

Los Angeles Lakers rumors: DeMarcus Cousins could be a Laker again.

The restart of the 2019-20 NBA season is planned for July 31 and has sparked several Los Angeles Lakers rumors. Most notably, there is a chance that former big-man DeMarcus Cousins could return to the team to resume his push towards winning a ring.

Cousins signed a one-year deal with the Los Angeles Lakers but never actually donned the purple and gold as he tore his ACL in a workout prior to the season in August. Cousins stuck with the team and traveled for most of the year, becoming an integral part of the team’s chemistry.

Cousins, however, was released in February to open up a roster spot for Markieff Morris. Despite being released, Cousins continued to workout and rehab with the team, aiming for a return in the 2020-21 season.

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However, with this season being pushed back so far, Cousins actually suiting up for the Los Angeles Lakers when the season resumes is plausible.

Lakers rumors: Why DeMarcus Cousins could return to the Lakers

First of all, let’s look at his recovery time. There was hope during the season that Cousins would be ready for the playoffs or even the NBA Finals, hence why the team held onto him for so long. They were cutting it close, though, and they ultimately pulled the plug on that idea by releasing him.

The Finals are going to be played four months later than expected and the season is going to resume two months after the Finals were supposed to start. With the Lakers’ optimism and Cousins being almost a full year removed from the injury, chances are that he will be ready by the time the playoffs start, at the very latest.

There is an avenue in which the team could sign Cousins as well. ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski reported that the league was discussing the idea of signing replacement players if someone were to get injured or contract COVID-19 during the season. The replacement players would have to be signed to a team at some point during the 2019-20 season.

Cousins fits that billing and it might not take someone being injured for him to get a chance to return to the Lakers. JaVale McGee has already expressed his concern with resuming the season in Orlando, and if any players do not want to participate then I am sure a replacement player would be granted.

Enter DeMarcus Cousins.

Heck, it might not even take someone backing out. A roster expansion is also being mulled over by the league, which would expand the roster of each team to 17 players. This would allow the Lakers to re-sign Cousins, and according to Eric Pincus of Bleacher Report, some NBA executives think that Cousins could actually return to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Would Cousins have a massive impact after not playing this season with all of his injury history? Probably not. But he absolutely would be a valuable role player, at the very least, that slots into the rotation and could swing some playoff games off the bench.

Let’s hope these Lakers rumors come to fruition.