Could former All-Star playing abroad solve Suns' backup big problem?

There is no doubt that the Phoenix Suns are going to try and rebuild their center rotation this offseason. Right now it consists of Jusuf Nurkic, and a backup in Drew Eubanks who may not even be on the roster next season.

For all of Nurkic's solid play during the regular season - and really he surpassed every expectation placed on him - he was once again painfully exposed in the playoffs. It may not be possible to move on from him, but adding a backup big with postseason experience should be a necessity in The Valley.

Which is where DeMarcus Cousins enters the conversation, with the former NBA standout currently playing in Taiwan.

As recently as February of this year, Cousins slammed the door on ever going back to the league. The 33-year-old feeling that he had had his chance in the NBA, and that suiting up again just wasn't going to happen. Plying his trade for the Taiwan Beer Leopards, he appeared content with that decision as well.

But that was before Cousins helped his current team win the T1 League Championship, with former Beer Leopard and future Hall of Famer Dwight Howard congratulating Cousins on the achievement. Any stats Cousins posts in Taiwan are obviously going to be taken with a massive pinch of salt, and his 24 points and 14.1 boards per game should be treated in exactly this way.

With Eubanks likely to opt in to the final year of the two year, $5 million contract he signed last summer, Cousins would represent an intriguing - and just as important cheap - alternative to the undersized but incredibly willing Eubanks. As it was last season the Suns ranked 10th in rebounds per game at 44.1, and Cousins could actually help some in this area.

He absolutely would not be able to dislodge Nurkic from the starting position, but there is one other very good reason to consider picking up the phone and giving him a call. Even if Cousins never really plays for the Suns, wouldn't he be the ideal mentor for if the organization draft a big man in the coming weeks?

The idea of Cousins as a mentor would have seemed crazy during most of his NBA career, but it is clear being out of the league has changed him. The Suns probably should take a center with the 22nd pick this summer - a point guard would take too long to get to the level required right now to win - and Cousins would be the perfect person to show them what not to do when they get into the league.

This would also have the added bonus of pushing Eubanks to either the third choice center, or the second/third choice power forward. A position that is probably better suited to his smaller, fiery frame anyway. So giving Cousins one more shot in the NBA - even if it is a Isaiah Thomas style role as a locker-room guy and nothing else - has to be considered by the front office in The Valley.