Former Los Angeles Lakers player DeMarcus Cousins was one of the best big men in the NBA for almost a decade prior to suffering several devastating injuries. But now he is going to be bringing some of his on-court success to NRG.
While he continues to rehabilitate his ACL tear from last summer, the four-time NBA All-Star will be spending some time on the esports side of the competitive scene working with NRG.
The signing didn’t specify whether Cousins will be making content, but it also doesn’t show him joining a specific subsidiary of the organization. It is unlikely that he will be joining one of the pro rosters—rather, he will probably be featured in several videos or streams and use his personal brand to help push NRG’s content.
This is far from the first time an NBA player, either active or retired, has gotten involved with esports. Former basketball star Rick Fox founded the Echo Fox organization, Jonas Jerebko is a big investor with Renegades, and Michael Jordan was part of a group that acquired controlling interest of Team Liquid. Shaquille O’Neal is an investor for NRG too, which makes the connection with Cousins pretty clear.
NRG billed the Cousins signing as the team’s “biggest” signing ever, likely playing into the fact that Cousins is 6’10” and will dwarf anyone he appears on screen or on stage with.
More information about how this partnership came about will be revealed in the coming weeks as Cousins starts to play games with the pros. Maybe he will be able to carry over his All-Star statline from the NBA over to whatever game he hops into.
