DeMarcus Cousins first committed to UAB on February 28, 2008 but never signed a letter of intent because he wanted to be released if UAB’s head coach, Mike Davis, left for another school, but the school refused to comply with this condition. Cousins decomitted from UAB and committed to Memphis on March 9, 2009. He reopened his recruitment after then Memphis coach John Calipari was hired at Kentucky. On April 7, 2009, Cousins decided to follow John Calipari to Kentucky. He signed his Letter of Intent on April 15. Exactly one year later on April 7, 2010, Cousins announced that he would forgo his final three seasons of collegiate eligibility and enter the 2010 NBA Draft.