DeMarcus Cousins could return sooner than expected

When former Kentucky great DeMarcus Cousins signed with the two-time defending champion Golden State Warriors, it was done with the mutual understanding that Boogie would have as much time as he needed to fully recover from the Achilles tear he suffered last season.

Evidently, this has been progressing faster than everyone anticipated.

A recent report from The Mercury News claims that Cousins has been participating in team scrimmages and is aiming to return to action sometime after Christmas. This was reportedly agreed upon by the Warriors training staff and Cousins. Although there has not been an official return day announced, he will be officially re-evaluated on Tuesday with the Warriors closely anticipating his return.

This is excellent news for Cousins, albeit surprising. The Achilles tendon tear is considered one of the most devastating in terms of long-term setbacks, and usually takes at least a full year to return to action from. Considering that Boogie’s injury occurred in January, it is evident that his rehabilitation has gone well ahead of schedule.

Cousins has reportedly been on a six-day a week workout regime which has included these before-mentioned scrimmages; which he most recently has done with Steph Curry, who has also been out with an injury. He was reportedly pushing to return to the Warriors lineup for their upcoming five-game road trip and the “sometime after Christmas” window was actually set to make sure Cousins is in peak form and conditioning when he does return.

This puts Cousins right about at the halfway mark of the NBA regular season in terms of games played, and will give him ample time to get back to playing form before what will be his first playoff run.