On December 14, Beijing time, a piece of news came: Chen Qiwen, the leader of the clouded leopards team of the Taiwan T1 League, announced on social media that Cousins had joined! The coach wrote before that there were also CBA teams offering Cousins, but the gap was too big with his expectations, and Cousins finally rejected the CBA.
Since the Clouded Leopards have not yet been officially announced, Chen Qiwen set this post to be visible only to friends. CBA media person "Gangnam City" has verified with the local basketball media that Cousins has indeed joined the clouded leopards men's basketball team. Everyone should remember that a year ago, in November 2022, it was rumored that Cousins had joined the Poseidon in the T1 League.
At that time, because Cousins did not have enough time, he could only play for two months, and the two sides finally failed to sign a contract. The T1 league is going to play until May, and if Cousins is back at the end of the month, he will be able to play for four or five months. At present, there is no media to break the news about Cousins' salary, which is estimated to be around $200,000 a month, and the total salary for the season can reach $1 million.
Cousins was born on August 13, 1990, and he was only 33 years old! In mid-November this year, Cousins came to China to participate in a series of streetball tournaments, and it is reported that he earned 1 million yuan in 10 days. Although it can't be verified, with Cousins's mood, it is estimated that it is not bad.
Why didn't the CBA team give Cousins a big contract? This season, the CBA's salary cap for foreign players has dropped from $5 million last season to $4.25 million. A team usually has to find 2-3 foreign players, some even 4 foreign players, with an average of more than $1 million per person. A CBA team went to the scene to inspect his streetball game and decided that Cousins was not worth the high price.
The CBA has 52 rounds this season, while the T1 League only has 30 rounds, usually two games a week, and the games are not confrontational, easy and enjoyable. If it were the same offer, Cousins would definitely go for the T1 League. The clouded leopard cheerleading team was also introduced by the coach before, and there are several good looks and figures, which are also a landscape of the league.
As for the cheerleaders interfering with the players' free throws, it has become the norm in the game, and I am afraid that Cousins will also "be killed". In the 2022-23 season, Cousins played in the Puerto Rico League, where he averaged 19 points, 9.8 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.3 steals and 1.4 blocks per game, shooting 42.1% from three-point range. Although it is close to home, the salary is low and the confrontation is large.
Five or six years ago, Cousins was the NBA's No. 1 center! From the 2015-2018 season, he averaged 26.5 points, 11.7 rebounds and 4.3 assists per game in the past three years, shooting 46%, 35%, and 75% from three! Played a triple-double of 44 points, 24 rebounds and 10 assists in a single game!
Cousins' precipitous slide was due to several major injuries: a torn Achilles tendon in his left foot in January 2018, a torn quadriceps muscle in April 2019, and a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in August 2019. His left leg, where it could be hurt, was almost gone. Coupled with personality and other reasons, Cousins left the NBA in the summer of 2022.
When Cousins is able to play, the leader will update his collection of the clouded leopards, come on!