DeMarcus Cousins yesterday took his talent to a local hand-shaken drink store in Taipei as part of his efforts to better familiarize himself with Taiwanese culture.
The four-time NBA All-Star nicknamed “Boogie” arrived at the 19 Tea House Yongji Store in Taipei’s Xinyi District (信義) at about 10:30am and donned the uniform of the chain store to serve as manager for a day, handing out 100 cups of “DeMarcus Cousins Bubble Tea” for free.
Boogie shook the first couple of cups of bubble tea for his fans and asked for on-site feedback, receiving a thumbs-up.
Photo: CNA
“So far the review is seeming to be good. Seeing people enjoy it, I’m very excited that I was able to create success at my first time. It’s a cool thing,” Cousins said. “[Fans in Taiwan] are very welcoming, very hospitable. You make me feel like I’m right at home, you make this transition very very easy for me.”
The chain store publicized the scheduled event on Thursday afternoon and more than 70 fans lined up outside the store at about 9:40am to get a taste of Boogie Special. The crowd only seemed to grow bigger after 11am.
At the head of the line was Dica Yu and a friend, surnamed Huang (黃), who live in Taipei and arrived outside the store at 3:30am.
“It was rumored that he would come to play in Taiwan last year, which didn’t happen and it was such a shame, so I think I have to seize this chance to see him up close,” Huang said.
While Huang said he just hopes Cousins enjoys his time in Taiwan, Yu said he looks forward to seeing the US player argue with referees to hype up the game.
Also in the crowd was Lisa Lee, a 38-year-old mother from Yunlin County, who woke up her daughter at 6am to catch the high-speed rail to Taipei and see Cousins in person.
“I started supporting him when he joined the [NBA’s Golden State] Warriors and was heartbroken to see him get injured then,” said Lee, who has followed Cousins since then, adding that she hopes he can get back in the NBA.
Lee said she has not watched a Cousins game in Taiwan yet, but has purchased a courtside seat ticket to the Taiwan Beer Leopards’ game against the Kaohsiung Aquas today.
Meanwhile, asked about his experience of local dishes, Cousins said he is a big fan of beef noodles and “basically eat[s] it every day” since his arrival on Thursday last week, but stinky tofu is something he has “not had the courage to try yet.”
The day also marked the debut of the chain store’s newly designed cup decorated with a Cousins’ cartoon, which he described as“creative” and “unique.”
“I have no complaint,” he said.
Cups with Cousins’ image are to be used for a month until Feb. 25, 19 Tea House representative Mike Yen (嚴凱彬) said.
Cousins is to suit up for the Leopards at Taoyuan Arena at 4:30pm today and for the game with the Tainan TSG GhostHawks tomorrow, before playing a cross-league exhibition game with the Hsinchu Toplus Lioneers in the P.League+ at Hsinchu County Stadium on Tuesday.
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