As he has long desired Cheap Harrison Phillips Jersey , DeMarcus Cousins will finally get a chance to play for a winner once he’s healthy from a torn left Achilles tendon.

When Boogie returns to the court this season, the volatile big man will give the Golden State Warriors five 2018 All-Stars in their starting lineup to chase another title – with Cousins trying for his first after never appearing in the playoffs. The center, who has had his problems with technical fouls, will sign with the two-time defending champions after the moratorium period is lifted Friday, a person with direct knowledge of the deal told The Associated Press on Monday night. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the contract is yet to be completed.

Cousins is set to join a starting lineup of two-time MVP Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, who is fresh off his second straight NBA Finals MVP, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green.

”The 3rd splash Brother,” Curry posted on Twitter with a series of happy crying emojis. ”Let’s go (at)boogiecousins.”

Cousins’ Pelicans lost to the Warriors in a five-game Western Conference semifinals while Cousins was injured. The 27-year-old Cousins played in New Orleans for coach Alvin Gentry Kyzir White Color Rush Jersey , a top assistant for Steve Kerr when the Golden State won the 2015 championship – the franchise’s first title in 40 years – and still a close friend and confidant of Golden State’s head coach.

Cousins tore his Achilles in late January and underwent surgery. He has posted regular updates on social media with the hash tags ”The Resurgence” and ”0 Doubt.”

”I been grinding since a youngin in the trenches this ain’t nothing new to me,” he wrote last month on Twitter .

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the Warriors would be the first team since Boston in 1975-76 to play five All-Stars from the previous season at the same time. That group was Jo Jo White, Charlie Scott, Dave Cowens, Paul Silas and John Havlicek.

Durant has again agreed to a two-year deal with a player option to sign a more a lucrative contract next summer, which also provides the Warriors financial flexibility as general manager Bob Myers builds the roster to go after another title. Golden State will play its final season at Oracle Arena in Oakland before a move to new Chase Center in San Francisco’s Mission Bay neighborhood.

The Warriors lost center JaVale McGee on Sunday to the Lakers, who landed LeBron James with a $153.3 million, four-year contract as the NBA’s free agency period began.

Green Calvin Ridley Jersey , for one, is a huge fan of Cousins.

”He’s incredible. He can score the ball,” Green said in January 2017 at Sacramento when Cousins was still with the Kings. ”I think DeMarcus is the best center in the game. A lot of times people don’t give him that credit. A part of it is they try to downplay his status because of his reputation or getting technical fouls or things like that. He is the best big man in the game hands down. It’s always interesting to watch, interesting to play against, interesting to play with, because he’s so incredibly talented.”

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Boston Celtics boss Danny Ainge was puzzled by all the talk about how Texas A&M forward Robert Williams didn’t work hard enough to make it in the NBA.

”It’s hard to have a `low motor’ and be the defensive player of the year two years in a row in a tough conference,” Ainge said Friday after the news conference to introduce Williams.

Williams was named the Southeastern Conference’s co-defensive player of the year in 2018 after winning the award outright in 2017.

”That’s pretty hard to do if you don’t have the motor,” Ainge said. ”But if the motor can get better, that’s an even bigger upside.”

A 6-foot-10 Authentic Ryan McLeod Jersey , 237-pound native of Oil City, Louisiana, Williams had been considered a lottery pick after his freshman year but he returned to play another season in college. He was projected as an early first-rounder in this year’s draft, but he fell to the Celtics at No. 27 overall.

Williams said his mother believed he needed another year to mature in college. Asked if he regretted not coming out after his freshman year, Williams broke into a wide smile and shook his head to show he wasn’t second-guessing that decision.

”I mean, I’m standing right here,” said Williams, who was assigned the No. 44 that was worn by Ainge during his Celtics playing career. ”I feel like I landed in a great place. It’s only up from here.”

Williams arrived in Boston earlier in the week and already has spent a couple of days working out at the team’s new training facility, the Auerbach Center. One of those workouts was at 6:30 a.m. on Friday before the news conference.

Incumbent power forward Al Horford was there to greet him on Wednesday.

”He just gave me the keys to success Authentic Roquan Smith Jersey ,” Williams said. ”Boston is a place that loves hard work. They love players that give it their all.”

Speaking on the eve of the league’s free agency period, Ainge declined to comment on specific players who might be available but did say it was ”unlikely” the team would land a superstar. LeBron James, Chris Paul and Paul George are expected to be free agents, and Kawhi Leonard has asked the Spurs to trade him.

”We explore every trade of certain magnitude or superstar first-ballot Hall of Fame-type player,” Ainge said. ”We’re going to take a look and kick the tires and see if there’s something there, but that’s all. I think those things are unlikely.”

A year after a complete offseason overhaul – trading Isaiah Thomas for Kyrie Irving and returning just four players from the team that earned the No. 1 seed in the Eastern Conference in 2016-17 – Ainge said he doesn’t expect to make a major move.

”We don’t have the need,” Ainge said. ”We have really good players and we want to surround them with role players.”

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