DeMarcus Cousins will start when he returns from injury for his Golden State Warriors debut, but Steve Kerr acknowledges the team will have to adapt to the new star.
The 28-year-old center tore his Achilles in January last season while with the New Orleans Pelicans and is yet to feature for the Warriors, although Golden State are reportedly hoping to have him in action next week.
Head coach Kerr confirmed that Cousins will play from the start in his comeback game, yet there will be work to be done with a player unlike any the team have had before.
"I'll start [Cousins]. After that, everything's on the table," Kerr told reporters on Thursday. "We have to figure out what the rotations will look like, how many minutes he can play.
"We'll have to play around with him - the minutes, the combinations, the sets. We haven't had a player like him here before."
“ Resilience in the face of adversity “#0Doubt#TheResurgence pic.twitter.com/XAU5JXvYBt
— DeMarcus Cousins (@boogiecousins) December 8, 2018
Cousins is tied only to a one-year deal with the Warriors and, addressing his situation, Kerr revealed sympathy for the injured star.
"When you think about when the injury happened, he was getting ready to sign a max or near-max contract, whether it was with New Orleans or something else," the coach said.
"It's a life-changing amount of money, not to mention the gratification that comes with being one of the best players in the world, an All-Star right in his prime. That all went down the drain for him. So think about that.
"As he's going through his rehab, he's only human, he had to be thinking, 'Man, what happened? All of a sudden I'm in Golden State, on the mid-level for one year, watching everyone else play basketball?' That's not easy.
"So we've tried to help him though that.The last couple weeks, his overall happiness just seems better. He's in a better place."
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