Many NBA players, after leaving the league, often try their hand at playing overseas, as even a "dead camel is bigger than a horse." Once they step off the NBA stage, they can become top stars in foreign leagues. For instance, former NBA center Boban recently joined the CBA and has been dominating other team's centers.
DeMarcus Cousins, known for his fiery personality and dominant playing style, was once hailed as the NBA's top center. However, after suffering injuries, his performance significantly declined, ultimately leaving him without a team to play for. He has since turned to overseas leagues, where he continues to hustle and earn money. Recently, he has joined the professional basketball league in Mongolia.
The Selenge Bodons team of the Mongolian Basketball League announced on their official Instagram that they have successfully recruited DeMarcus Cousins, the former NBA top center and four-time All-Star player. Cousins has been relentless in his pursuit of earning money.
Over an 11-season career in the NBA, Cousins played for eight teams including the Kings, Pelicans, Warriors, and Lakers. He was selected to the All-Star team four times and named to the second All-NBA team twice. He also won a gold medal with Team USA at the 2016 Rio Olympics. At his peak, Cousins was one of the most dominant centers in the NBA, with solid skills under the basket and a soft touch from outside, excelling on both ends of the court with an average of 25+12 points and rebounds.
However, continuous injuries marked a turning point in his career, prematurely ending his prime and leading to a nomadic existence in the latter part of his NBA tenure. He bid farewell to the NBA during the 2021-22 season.
After leaving the NBA, Cousins has played for multiple teams in overseas leagues. In the 2022-2023 season, he moved to the Puerto Rican league, averaging 19 points, 9.8 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.3 steals, and 1.4 blocks per game.
In the summer of 2023, Cousins joined the Wuxi Cultural Tourism team of China's Super Three League. In the 2023-2024 season, he joined the Taiwan Beer Leopards of Taiwan's T1 League, leading the team to victory and being named Finals MVP. Now, with his move to the Mongolian professional league, Cousins is not only continuing his basketball dream but also earning dollars.
This contrasts with Dwight Howard, another former top center, who has not signed with an NBA team since playing for the Lakers in the 2021-2022 season. Although he played for the Yuntu Leopard team in Taiwan's T1 League during the 2022-2023 season, that was already a thing of the past.
Howard, burdened with substantial child support payments for multiple children in the US and embroiled in various scandals since joining the Taiwanese league, now seems to be more active on blogs. Comparatively, Howard should take a page out of Cousins' book and learn from him.
