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NBA draft prospect Sharife Cooper paces around a Nieman Marcus in the heart of Atlanta’s high-end shopping district frequented by ATL’s finest rappers and celebrities. A stylist shows off outfit combinations for draft night with media interviews interspersed between blazer suggestions as a photographer fires away.
Cooper wants the right outfit for what will be the biggest night of his life to date, but there is also a doctor’s appointment on deck that cannot be missed. The future NBA guard reveals he has two last-minute team workouts to prepare for as well.
The morning is a foreshadowing of the expectations that come with being an NBA point guard which is rarely followed with a chaser of patience. Cooper is old enough to purchase a lottery ticket at a gas station but would be turned away if he brought a six-pack of Coors Light to the counter. The point guard just turned 20 which may leave you empty-handed at the bar but has become the perfect age for an NBA prospect. Cooper is one year removed from being a five-star prospect out of McEachern High School in Marietta, Georgia followed by a season of college basketball at Auburn.
The soon-to-be NBA player does not seem the least bit rattled running the days leading up to the draft the way he does an offense. Expectations are nothing new for Cooper who was a consensus top-25 player in the 2020 class and has spent the past several months having his game picked apart by NBA front offices.
I try a rapid-fire approach mentioning some of the teams Cooper has been linked to in the pre-draft rumors including the Lakers, Knicks and Hawks. Cooper refuses to show his hand preferring to wait until he hears his name called by NBA commissioner Adam Silver. Pre-draft interviews are a bit like celebrity boxing matches with both parties dancing around the ring.
Cooper wins this round but opens up when I ask him about Atlanta as a basketball city, fresh off the Hawks unprecedented playoff run. The highly-touted prospect will be the latest in a long line of Atlanta ballers in the NBA.
“There’s a lot of great players that came out of Atlanta,” Cooper explained. “I don’t know the specific representation, but it’s a mix of different unique players. I feel like Atlanta is doing their thing when it comes to grassroots sports. All the teams that brought up these guys. Atlanta is for sure doing their thing.”
Cooper Believes His Game Has Shades of CP3 & Kyrie
Watch any highlight mix of Cooper and the first thing you notice is his passing ability. Cooper has been described as a wizard on the basketball court, finding his teammates at any spot on the floor. His court vision is a big reason he averaged 8.1 assists at Auburn, and it is easy to envision Cooper running the second-unit offense when he begins his NBA career.
That may be where Cooper begins, but he has his sights set on the NBA greats. Cooper cited Chris Paul and Kyrie Irving as two players that he draws inspiration from for his own game. Paul represents Cooper as the floor general, but, like Irving, the guard has no problem getting buckets.
“Personally, I say a little bit of Chris Paul, just the way he leads and can score and do a mix of both, and Kyrie Irving the way he can finish around the rim,” Cooper noted. “So, I try to take things out of their games and use it in my own way.”
Cooper on LeBron: ‘It Would be Amazing to Play With Him’
The Lakers are one of several teams that have been linked to Cooper. Los Angeles’ backcourt faces a lot of uncertainty with Dennis Schroder hitting free agency. Cooper is admittedly a major admirer of LeBron James. I point out that next season he will either be throwing lobs to King James or trying to help his team lock down the superstar on defense.
“That’s somebody that I looked up to all my life,” Cooper admitted. “He’s kind of been in the league since I was born. So, it would be amazing to play with him. It would also be amazing to lace up my shoes and go up against him. So, I’m looking forward to both of ’em [either option].”
Cooper is close to being accurate as he had just turned two years old when James was selected by the Cavaliers with the No. 1 pick in the 2003 NBA Draft. The Auburn guard’s range appears to be from the late lottery to the mid-20s heading into draft night. The Lakers are on the clock at No. 22, and Cooper will find out which side of the court he will be on when he shares the stage with King James.
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