DeMarcus Cousins is having a renaissance with the Denver Nuggets. After being signed for the rest of the season, the former Pelicans and Kings star is proving he's still got what it takes to be a great NBA player. He's been a vital part for the team keeping themselves afloat despite their injuries.

His masterpiece, however, came against the Houston Rockets. With the Nuggets missing Nikola Jokic for the game, DeMarcus Cousins started at center. In return, Boogie posted the best stats since suffering his debilitating injuries a few years ago. He exited the game with a vintage statline of 31 points of 10 of 14 shooting, along with nine rebounds.

After the game, Nuggets head coach Michael Malone said that Cousins could solve one of the team's biggest problems: relying on Jokic a little too much. (via Mike Singer)

Jokic is playing some of the best ball of his career. A year removed from his MVP campaign, the Nuggets center maintained his previous form, averaging monster stats across the board. However, due to many injuries the team suffered, Malone has been forced to run everything through Jokic.

While that's obviously an amazing short-term plan, it could end up back-firing on them in the long run. Jokic's league-leading 33.0 minutes per game is a sure-fire way for the Nuggets star to get injured. Having Cousins be a reliable back-up big to the Serbian behemoth will do wonders for them come the postseason.

Unless Murray comes back from his injury sooner, the Nuggets will have a hard time competing. However, having a former MVP candidate backing up the league MVP is always a great thing.