April 15, 2019; Oakland, CA, USA; Golden State Warriors center DeMarcus Cousins (0) walks off the court after an injury against the LA Clippers during the first quarter in game two of the first round of the 2019 NBA Playoffs at Oracle Arena. Photo Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports
Golden State center DeMarcus Cousins suffered a torn left quad muscle and is out indefinitely, the team said Tuesday afternoon.
An MRI exam conducted in the Bay Area earlier in the day confirmed the injury.
The Warriors’ statement made no mention of surgery, only that Cousins would begin rehabilitation right away.
The Warriors blew a 31-point lead against the Clippers on Monday, evening their first-round series at 1-1.
Cousins was injured while trying to run down a loose ball 3 1/2 minutes into the team’s eventual 135-131 loss to the Clippers. With the Warriors leading 11-9 and the Clippers possessing the ball just past the half-court line, Cousins deflected a pass and sent it down the court toward the Warriors’ bench.
Trying to run down the ball before it went out of bounds, Cousins stumbled and went down without being touched, and he immediately grabbed his left quad. He walked off and to the locker room under his own power.
On Monday night, before the results of the injury were known, Warriors coach Steve Kerr said he knew it was serious.
“There’s a pretty significant quad injury,” Kerr said after the game. “We’ll get an MRI [Tuesday]. But he’s going to be out for … I’ll just say a while because I think it’s unclear right now how long he’ll be out. It’s significant.”
Cousins, 28, made his Warriors’ debut in mid-January after recuperating from a ruptured left Achilles tendon he suffered playing for the New Orleans Pelicans against the Houston Rockets on Jan. 26, 2018.
Cousins joined the Warriors on a one-year, $5.3 million deal in free agency.
