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DeMarcus Cousins tore his left Achilles on Jan. 26, 2018. He returned to game action on Jan. 18, 2019.
In five games with the Warriors, he's averaging 15.2 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.6 assists, while shooting 49 percent overall. He's only committing 1.8 turnovers per game and has made six of his 11 3-point attempts.
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But on Wednesday afternoon, Bob Myers didn't spend much time talking about Cousins' offensive exploits. What has Golden State's general manager seen from the four-time All-Star on the defensive end?
[RELATED: DeMarcus Cousins explains why he isn't surprised by his early success]
"Smart. I see smart," Myers said on 95.7 The Game. "He's a very bright player and I think he uses his intelligence ... defensively, he knows his limitations and he's got great length. He's got great reach -- a lot like Iguodala -- they cover a lot of space with their length.
"So that's why you see such a great rebounder, got great hands. If the ball is in his area -- or even outside of it -- he's getting the rebound. You forget about how good of a straight rebounder he is, and that always helps you defensively.
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"He's able to gap (the guy he is guarding). You're seeing him not put himself in positions where he's exposed too much. He knows areas where he can be in ... that goes with his intelligence. You don't watch us and say, 'Wow, they're picking on Cousins.'"
That is correct.
Against the Lakers, Cousins cut off a driving Josh Hart and then worked hard to get in position to take a charge:
Against the Wizards, Cousins defended three guys on the same possession and forced a miss at the rim:
Against the Celtics, Cousins took the ball away from Kyrie Irving:
[RELATED: DeMarcus Cousins faces biggest test yet in battle against Joel Embiid]
He also blocked Kyrie at the rim (shown in the picture at the top of this article) and poked the ball away from a driving Kyrie in the first half to force a jump ball.
"I would argue at this point -- I don't think he's been really taken advantage of in much capacity at all," Myers declared. "People will try different things, but I think he's held his own defensively. I've never felt like, 'Hey, we got to get him out of the game.'
"He's been very good."
That is correct.
Drew Shiller is the co-host of Warriors Outsiders. Follow him on Twitter @DrewShiller