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.