Updated at 10:44 am PT
Depending on how his body feels today, DeMarcus Cousins may make his return to the court tonight against the Los Angeles Clippers.
The Sacramento Kings center participated in his first full practice yesterday after injuring his left quad last week against the Milwaukee Bucks. He is listed as questionable for this evening’s contest at Sleep Train Arena.
“Can’t really answer that right now,” Cousins said yesterday when asked of the chances he plays against the Clippers. “But if I’m feeling like I’m ready to go, I’ll definitely be playing tomorrow.”
Cousins said that his leg is “not exactly where I want it to be”, but that it’s feeling better. Kings coach Keith Smart liked what he saw out of his 22-year-old center on Monday. Barring any setbacks, Smart is optimistic that Cousins will be ready to go come tip-off later this evening.
“For the most part, he made it through the whole practice and so I’m sure he’ll be ready to go tomorrow,” Smart said.
Cousins wore a protective pad on his left quadricep, which was bruised following a collision with Mike Dunleavy of the Bucks on Mar. 12. He initially practiced without the pad, but took a bump to his leg in yesterday’s workout session that re-aggravated the injury.
“It kind of bothers you but it’s there to help,” Cousins said of the protective gear he expects to wear if he plays in tonight’s game.
Cousins has missed the Kings’ last two outings after suffering the left quad contusion. Considering his durability in his young career, missing consecutive games to injury has somewhat surprised the third-year center himself.
“I’m usually pretty good with just playing through injury,” said Cousins, who has sat out only three games due to the health reasons in his three NBA seasons. “But, I mean usually my injuries are my upper body or something. So, (it’s) kind of hard to play without your legs.”
While Cousins has recovered, Patrick Patterson has taken his teammate’s place in the starting lineup. Patterson is hopeful the Kings big man is back on the floor sooner rather than later.
“I know he’s definitely wanting to be out there as much as possible,” Patterson said after practice yesterday. “He’s been taking the necessary procedures and doing everything possible in order to get back out here. Hopefully, he’s back out on the court sooner than later.”
Additional notes
Tyreke Evans was sidelined by a sore-right foot and did not practice yesterday. Like Cousins, he is questionable for tonight’s game. Chuck Hayes and James Johnson also sat out Monday’s practice because of personal reasons. Hayes is expected to be on the bench this evening while Johnson’s return remains uncertain at this time.
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