DeMarcus Cousins has already won the T1 Taiwan League Championship this summer. Now, he’s teaming up with some fellow former Los Angeles Lakers to chase The Asian Tournament (TAT) title.
Cousins is joining Dwight Howard and Quinn Cook on the Taiwan Mustangs, which is part-owned by Howard, for the event. The three were teammates on the 2019-20 Los Angeles squad that won the NBA Finals, although Cousins never played a game for the Lakers after tearing his left ACL in an offseason pickup game in August 2019. Howard previously played for the Taiwan Beer Leopards, the team with which Cousins won the T1 title earlier this month.
Boogie was named Finals MVP after putting up 24 points, 24 rebounds, two steals, two blocks, and an assist in the championship-clinching Game 4. He officially retired from the NBA in February 2024, telling USA Today’s Hoops Hype he’s ready to move on to the next chapter of his life. Taiwan’s been a big part of that so far.
“My time in Taiwan was incredible,” he said back in February. “I met some really, really nice and genuine people, and that’s a rare thing given the times we live in now. So just to be able to meet genuinely nice people with good intentions, that’s a really dope thing.”
“Just the culture, the way they carry themselves, the hospitality. And, you know, I’m a huge foodie. The quickest way to win me over is with a good plate of food. So, I went over there and the food was incredible. You know, the hot pots and the Wagyu barbecues and things of that nature. It was really cool. So I enjoyed my time there. I look forward to spending more time there.”
Howard, 38, hasn’t played in the NBA since the 2021-22 season with the Lakers. The eight-time NBA All-Star took his career overseas in November 2022, joining the Taiwan Beer Leopards and then Strong Group Athletics in the Philippines and Mets de Guaynabo in Puerto Rico. In May 2024, Howard signed with the Taiwan Mustangs, becoming the first player and part-owner in the league. Bringing Cousins and Cook on board is part of his quest to recruit more NBA stars to play in Taiwan.
The Mustangs are now the favorite to win The Asian Tournament, which also features teams from the Phillippines, China, Japan, and South Korea. The TAT Taipei round of games takes place July 26-August 1 in Taipei.
Enjoy some highlights of Boogie’s first season in the T1 below.
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