Kings upgrade Cousins to questionable for Thursday's game vs. Bucks

DeMarcus Cousins' return is near and the Sacramento Kings have upgraded his status to questionable for Thursday night's game with the Milwaukee Bucks. 

The center, who was having an MVP-caliber season, hasn't played since Nov. 26 due to a bout of viral meningitis. 

The Kings, who have a 2-8 record in Cousins' absence, fired coach Mike Malone on Monday and became a hot topic of discussion Tuesday when owner Vivek Ranadive likened the search for a new coach to that of a musical conductor.

Cousins was averaging 23.5 points, 12.6 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game before his illness.