Clippers officially bring aboard DeMarcus Cousins

The Clippers have their 14th man, and he’s a recognizable fellow with a most distinctive moniker.

As expected, DeMarcus Cousins – aka Boogie – signed a 10-day contract with Clippers, they announced Monday, the deadline to add a 14th player on a standard contract to their roster. The NBA permits teams to field fewer than that for as many as two weeks at a time, and the Clippers had been down to 13 players since trading Mfiondu Kabengele to Sacramento on March 22.

According to ESPN’s salary cap expert Bobby Marks, the Clippers will pay Cousins $175,668 for the 10-day deal, with $110,998 counting toward the tax.

The Clippers aren’t bringing aboard the 30-year-old free agent center just to fill out their roster, of course. They hope the four-time All-Star will bolster their depth at center, a priority considering Serge Ibaka’s recent injury has thinned their options in the post. Ibaka has been sidelined for the past 11 games with what’s being characterized as lower back tightness.

Cousins, of course, has had to deal with his own litany of physical setbacks. He suffered a left Achilles tendon tear in January 2018, a left torn quadriceps in April 2019 (which he sustained in a Western Conference first-round playoff game against the Clippers) and, in August 2019, a torn left ACL ahead of what was supposed to be his first season with the Lakers.

He missed all of last season with the ACL injury and never suited up for the Lakers, who waived him to create a roster spot to sign Markieff Morris.

“I think he has a lot left,” new Clippers point guard Rajon Rondo said of his close friend Cousins in an interview last week on ESPN. “I know he has a lot to prove to himself and the league, and he probably wants to prove as many people wrong as I do for him. … I wish him all the best, he’s had a tough road to get back to this point where he is.”

This season, the 6-foot-10 Cousins played 25 games for the Houston Rockets, who released him on Feb. 23 after he’d averaging 9.6 points and 7.6 rebounds per game while shooting 37.6% in 20.2 minutes per game. His short time with the Rockets included some highlights, including a 28-point, 17-rebound, five-assist game against Dallas in January.

Cousins had to clear the NBA’s coronavirus health and safety protocols before he could sign with the Clippers.

"I think he's got a lot left. He's got a lot to prove to himself and the league. I wish him the best" – Rondo on @boogiecousins#NBA #NBATwitter #TheJump #ClipperNation

— The Jump on ESPN (@NBATheJump) April 2, 2021

IBAKA’S STATUS

Clippers coach Tyronn Lue has indicated that guard Patrick Beverley is closing in on a return to action after missing 12 games with right knee soreness. The guard, Lue said, has recently participated in five-on-five practice, has completed all of his workouts and that’s giving his coach the sense that he’s “pretty close.”

But it seems, Lue said, Ibaka isn’t nearly so close.

The 31-year-old starting center did make an appearance at the Clippers’ past two games at Staples Center, including conspicuously on Sunday, when the 6-foot-10 native of the Republic of Congo was a striking presence on the sideline in a loose-fitting, body-length striped gown.

Ibaka – who has been hampered by tightness in his lower back – appeared to remain on his feet for the duration of the Clippers’ 104-86 victory over the Lakers, to which he contributed as much as he could, Lue said.

“He’s been very vocal, just talking to (Ivica Zubac) and talking to the young guys, defensively, where they’re supposed to be, low man and activity, being on our string defense,” Lue said. “Just really staying on the guys defensively about where they’re supposed to be at on the floor.”

As for Ibaka’s attire – which Ibaka often refers to not as clothing or fashion, but as “art”?

Lue declined to comment: “I can’t remember,” the coach claimed with a laugh before bolting from the Zoom hot seat. “I can’t remember what he had on!”

TRAIL BLAZERS (30-19) at CLIPPERS (33-18)

When: Tuesday, 7 p.m.

Where: Staples Center

TV: Bally Sports SoCal

It's called art.

by @sergeibaka pic.twitter.com/OIsOsYKzOr

— LA Clippers (@LAClippers) April 4, 2021