DeMarcus Cousins set himself an ambitious target to return from injury in time for training camp with the Golden State Warriors.A torn Achilles can typically take up to 12 months to fully recover from and after suffering the setback in January, it would be a surprise if he makes a return before Christmas.Most teams were put off from signing him in free agency due to the injury which opened the door for the Warriors to sign him.With four All-Stars already on their roster, the back-to-back champions can afford to be patient with the center and allow him all the time he needs to get back to full health.Cousins is likely to make a return at some in the New Year and should play enough games in the regular season to get up to speed.But the Dubs are only concerned about making sure he's ready for the playoffs."The goal for us is to have him in the playoffs," said Warriors general manager Bob Myers, according to the Mercury News' Mark Medina."That doesn't mean we'll wait until the playoffs. When he's ready to play, he'll play. We just don't know when that will be."

Patience

If he's able to get back to 100 percent by the time the postseason comes around, he could have a huge impact on the team's pursuit of a third consecutive title.

But there will no rush or a sense of urgency as the Oakland-based outfit is prepared to give him all the time he needs to get back on the court.

"I think the surgery is anywhere from eight to 10 months from the time you have it," Myers added.

"For us, it won't be, 'We need you to get out there tonight.' It'll be ramping it up slowly. You can't really tell with a guy until they get on the court and does certain things."

Since officially signing with the Bay Area franchise, the six-time All-Star has changed his tone about his targeted comeback, accepting that it'll take longer than he would want.

"I was aiming for training camp but I've kind of communicated with the staff and the coaches and it's kind of up in the air," he said.

"So it will be when I'm ready - when I'm 100 percent ready - and we'll take it from there."

The Warriors are a little light at the center position after JaVale McGee, David West and Zaza Pachulia all departed.

However, that still won't mean that they'll look to speed up Cousins' recovery as Jordan Bell and Draymond Green are good enough to hold down the thought until he's ready.

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