Daequan Cook

Offered, per Insiders.

04/22/05: "Daequan Cook, a 6-foot-5 junior from Dayton (OH) Dunbar who was named 2004-2005 Division II Associated Press Southwestern All-District Player of the Year, will reportedly play at Mouth of Wilson (VA) Oak Hill Academy next season. Cook, considered the top player in Ohio in the Class of 2006, averaged 22.6 points and 10.8 rebounds per game this season and led Dunbar to the state semifinals. Cook recently committed to Ohio State." - Scouthoops.com

04/05/05: Listed as the 10th best player in his class. - PrepSpotlight.com

03/23/05: Cook committed to Ohio State.

03/23/05: "Dunbar High School basketball standout Daequan Cook will verbally commit to his school of choice today. Cook and the Dunbar coaches have mentioned Ohio State, Wake Forest, North Carolina, Cincinnati, Michigan and Michigan State as possible choices." - Dayton Daily News

03/22/05: "Everyone said how bad he played.....he had 26. Nuff said! - PrepSpotlight.com

03/17/05: "When asked what he likes about Ohio State, Cook replied, "The atmosphere. It's close to home. My friends would be able to come and see me play. And I like the coaches. They get up and down. This is the type of basketball I would like to play." (Dunbar coach Peter) Pullen was a bit more forthcoming with some of Cook's favorites. "My thoughts of who I think he's looking at would definitely be Ohio State, North Carolina, Michigan, Cincinnati, Wake Forest and Michigan State," Pullen said." - BuckNuts.com

03/15/05: "Cook, a 6-5 forward considered one of the top juniors in the country, shares the D-II player of the year honor with the 6-3 Diebler. The two will face off Thursday in the D-II semifinals at 2pm at Ohio State's Schottenstein Center. Cook averaged 22.6 points, 10.4 rebounds and 6.1 assists for the 22-4 Wolverines . . . (snip) "I've always been a team guy. I don't really think about individual goals," Cook said." - Dayton Daily News

03/09/05: "Daequan Cook and the Wolverines boys basketball team jumped to a big early lead and cruised to a 54-36 victory in front of 7,000 at UD Arena. (snip) Cook got rolling early, scoring 10 of his game-high 24 points in the first quarter. The 6-foot-5 player also scored 10 in the fourth, showing off slashing, shooting and passing skills and grabbing 10 total rebounds." - Dayton Daily News (Skip Prosser and Keith LeGree both attended the game, per message board posts)

03/08/05: "Cook was in attendance on Sunday watching Ohio State's upset victory of the top-ranked Illinois. The visit went well for Cook, who hopes to be winning a big game or two of his own next week." - BuckNuts.com

03/03/05: "Dunbar won its second straight district title behind Daequan Cook's 21 points, setting up a regional semi showdown with Chaminade-Julienne." - Dayton Daily News

03/01/05: "Ohio State and Wake Forest are the leaders for 6'5 Jr Daequan Cook from Dayton (Dunbar) OH, but North Carolina, Cincinnati, and Michigan must also be mentioned for this prolific scoring and athletic 2-guard who is ranked #6 nationally in the junior class by the HOOP SCOOP."

02/18/05: Huggins attended the Dunbar - Little Miami game. "The top-seeded Wolverines (17-4) had five players in double figures in a 102-48 decision against Little Miami. Daequan Cook had 21, Aaron Pogue 16. . . " - Dayton Daily News

02/17/05: Cook's Wolverines finished the season ranked #1 in Div 2 in the Dayton area. Cook averaged 21/8 ppg and 10.8 rpg. He shot 81% from the line and 42% from the arc (32-75).

02/16/05: "Standout Daequan Cook may not be at 100 percent for the tourney run. The 6-foot-5 junior injured a muscle near his hip in a Feb. 9 game against Colonel White. He sat out Dunbar's final regular-season game against Belmont. On Tuesday, Pullen said doctors cleared Cook to play. "He didn't do a whole lot in practice today," Pullen said. "I'm not going to do anything to injure him for a long period of time. I'll rest him more than I normally do... He has to understand that." - Dayton Daily News

02/10/05: Cook currently ranks top 10 in Dayton area in scoring (22 ppg), rebounding (11.4) and FT shooting (83%).

02/04/05: Cook admits the thought of moving to Indianapolis and playing with his AAU buddies Oden and Mike Conley Jr. at Lawrence North had crossed his mind. "Sometimes I think about that, but I'm fine where I'm at and we can win the state (D-II) title here at Dunbar," Cook said. (snip) "AAU is more important to me because of the exposure," Cook said. "I have fun with the Heat because all the attention is not on me. Greg (Oden) makes my job easier. We all play different roles. We play an NBA schedule in the summer against the best in the nation. These are great memories and opportunities for me." - Dayton Daily News


02/02/05: "Brick Oettinger of the Recruiter's Handbook thinks Wake Forest had the inside track for both 6'1 Jr Michael Conley from Indianapolis (Lawrence North) IN and 6'4 Jr Daequan Cook from Dayton (Dunbar)OH" - Hoop Scoop

01/31/05: "Dunbar won its eighth straight boys high school basketball game Monday night defeating Colonel White, 91-69, at UD Arena. The win gives the Wolverines a 13-3 record. Daequan Cook was their leading scorer with 26 points followed by Aaron Pogue with 19." - Dayton Daily News

01/29/05: "Aaron Pogue had 21 points and 15 rebounds, and Daequan Cook added 16 points, eight assists and five steals as the Wolverines improved to 12-3" - Dayton Daily News

01/16/05: "The latest list looks like this: Ohio State, Wake Forest, North Carolina, Cincinnati, Louisville, Michigan, Kentucky, Michigan State, and UConn and Oklahoma and some others." - DeaconSports.com

01/15/05: Cook scored 27 points in a win over Cin Taft.

01/09/05: "Cook's game is complete. With his size and bounce, Cook easily elevates over shorter guards for uncontested shots, and with his quickness and ball handling skills, bigger players struggle to keep up with him." - more at www.PrepSpotlight.com

01/08/05: "Daequan Cook scored 31 points as the Dunbar boys basketball team stopped Columbus Brookhaven 66-62 Saturday night at Zane Trace. The 6-foot-5 junior added 13 rebounds and five assists for the 8-3 Wolverines." - Dayton Daily news

01/03/05: "he went off for 22 points and 13 boards in the second half versus Brother Martin to lead his squad to a come from behind victory." - www.Hoopmasters.com

12/31/04: Cook is named one of the top 25 HS players in the country - regardless of class. - HoopScoop

12/31/04: Cook scored a game high 26 points (11-30, 1-6 on treys) in a loss to Borther Martin HS of Louisiana.

12/29/04: "Dunbar's 6-5 junior super Daequan Cook flirted with a triple double leading Dunbar with 22 points, 9 boards, and 9 assists. He got solid support from 6-8 sophomore Aaron Pogue with 14 points." - Hoopmasters

12/28/04: "Daequan Cook from Dayton (Dunbar) OH did once again put up impressive numbers, as he finished with 22 points, nine rebounds, nine assists, five turnovers, and 9-17 field goals, although most of his points came off transition and the competition wasn't that great." - HoopScoop

12/21/04: "Cook visited Wake Forest last weekend. Tops on his list are North Carolina, Oklahoma, Ohio State, Michigan and Cincinnati." - Dayton Daily News

12/20/04: "Putting the fun and games back into the game of basketball, the Deacons outscrapped the Longhorns of the Big 12 in front of an animated, sold-out crowd of 14,671, coveted recruits Greg Oden, Mike Conley and Daequan Cook and a national-television audience." - Winston-Salem Journal

12/18/04: "Dunbar suffered its first loss Friday night in boys high school basketball, falling at previously winless Cincinnati Western Hills 52-46 in a Southwest Ohio Public League game. High-scoring Daequan Cook was held to 10 points, 15 below his average. Aaron Pogue led the Wolverines with 13 points." - Dayton Daily News

12/11/04: "Daequan Cook went for 36 points as the Wolverines moved to 3-0, 2-0 in the Southwest Ohio Public League. He is averaging 28 points." - Dayton Daily News

12/10/04: Cook has 48 total points in his first two games.

12/09/04: Listed by recruiting expert Rick Bolus as the 2nd best player in Ohio, regardless of class. Bolus bases his player rankings on college potential.

12/04/04: "Hoopmasters.com's #4 player in the class of 2006, helped lead Dayton, OH Dunbar to a 52-40 win over Cincinnati, OH Hughes in the Wolverines season opener. Cook, scored 18 of his game-high 25 points in the second half."

11/26/04: "the area's top leaper may be 6-5 Dunbar junior Daequan Cook, who plans to touch the top of the backboard when he's a senior (seriously)" - Dayton Daily News

11/26/04: "Cook won MVP honors in a 16-and-under tournament in Italy last spring and excelled in AAU tournaments and summer camps. "I've worked on my jump shot and I've been lifting weights and working on defense," he said. "When you play against some of the best players in the country, you know you're getting better." - Dayton Daily News

11/15/04: "Who are the schools you’ve got the most interest in?"
DC: "Ohio State and North Carolina, Wake Forest, Michigan State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, and Miami (Fla.). There’s some good schools in there, so I’m just trying to keep my options open. . . ." - BuckNuts.com

11/15/04: "Now Cook has decided he’s like to play with one of his teammates, Mike Conley Jr., in college. "We’re trying to make the same decision on a school," Cook said. "We both like Wake Forest and Ohio State." However, those aren’t the only schools that Cook is considering. He also has North Carolina, his dream school growing up, and Michigan and Oklahoma in his top five." - ScoutHoops.com (4 to 3)

11/04/04: Listed as the 6th best player in his class. - InsidersHoops.com

11/03/04: Listed as the best 2 guard in Ohio, regardless of class. - PrepSpotlight.com

10/15/04: Attended Midnight Madness at Cincinnati. - Mike Ryan (2 to 4)

10/01/04: "Recently Roy Williams was at an open gym,” Powell said. "Thad Matta and Bob Huggins and Oklahoma was there. Michigan State has stopped in the school. Syracuse was there and Tommy Amaker. Michigan is a big fan. . . . Cook will spend his Midnight Madness on the campus of the University of Cincinnati." - theInsidersHoops.com (re-activated the file, 1 to 2)

10/01/04: Listed as the 5th best player in his class (Oden, #1) - PrepStars.com

08/11/04: Listed as the 3rd best player in his class. - RivalsHoops.com

06/02/04: "Schools like North Carolina, Wake Forest, N.C. State, Arizona, Clemson, Ohio State, Xavier, and Michigan are already showing a lot of interest in 6'6 Soph Daequan Cook from Dayton (Dunbar)OH." - HoopScoop (dropped to inactive)

05/27/04: "Right now my strengths are my jump shot, my height, and my ability to take people off the dribble. The things I want to work on are my defense and my left hand." - Peegs.com

Video of Cook in the Kingswood tourney
http://hoopvision.com/library.php?playerid=48

05/17/04: "Cook is an athletic, skilled perimeter player who does pretty much everything very well. His athleticism makes him very dangerous in the open court, and he has the skill to do damage in a half court game." - www.RivalsHoops.com

05/17/04: Listed as the 4th best player in his class. - PrepStars.com

05/16/04: "has a quick first step and a strong three-point shot. Cook understands the game and plays well defensively, something not always present during AAU games. Cook is currently ranked No. 17 in Rivals.com's Class of 2006." - CardinalSports.com

05/05/04: PrepStars had a nice paragraph on Cook describing him as someone who can hit 22 foot shots and an "explosive athlete".

05/04/04: "Cook is a member of the extremely deep '06 class in OH. Cook is a 6' 5" wing from Dayton (Dunbar), OH. Although currently a Soph., he played up with the 17s for the talented Indy Heat team. Cook is the real deal. He is very athletic, runs the floor very well, rebounds well, can take it off the dribble to the hole & finish as well as has good hops. He needs to play with a little more fire on a consistent basis & work on his shot selection a bit. Cook's stock is already on the rise & most of the experts see him as a Top 25 player in his class already with a real shot at being a Top 10 player. He likes OSU a lot & currently has offers from Cincinnati, Xavier & OSU. Many ACC schools are starting to get involved & it will be interesting to see how this shakes out." - 'Scoots', on the Ohio State board

05/01/04: "The 6-foot-4 sophomore guard continues to impress us with his versatility and basketball IQ." - www.RivalsHoops.com

04/28/04: Cook was the most consistent player for the Heat all weekend, scoring at will and displaying an overall game that made college coaches giddy in excitement. He has a beautiful jump shot, he skies for rebounds and he covers a ton of ground on defense. Very rarely, will you hear him talk trash or taunt opponents. He goes about his business without much fanfare. Off the court, he’s equally quiet. "I think I’ve played well but I still need to do better,” Cook said. “Sometimes I settle on what I can do. I need to correct my mistakes like in my ball handling and just your basic skills.” Albeit modest, Cook doesn’t have a glaring weakness." - www.RivalsHoops.com (snip)

04/27/04: "Cook would have to be listed as one of America's top 10 rising juniors -- even in a loaded class." - www.PrepStars.com

04/26/04: "The early list for Spiece Indy Heat sophomore stud Daequan Cook reads Michigan, Ohio State and Cincinnati." - www.theInsidersHoops.com

04/26/04: "The most effective player for them (Spiece team) overall was rising junior guard Daequan Cook, who is a big-time shooter and athlete and among the best backcourt prospects in the Class of 2006." - PrepStars.com

04/26/04: "He’s all over the court and knows how to score buckets. He's equally solid on the defensive end with his wingspan and good rebounding skills." - www.rivalshoops.com

04/22/04: "Sensational rising junior Greg Oden jumped to a fast start for Spiece, but he didn't get as many touches in the second half. The most effective player for them overall was rising junior guard Daequan Cook, who is a big-time shooter and athlete and among the best backcourt prospects in the Class of 2006." - PrepStars.com

03/01/04: Listed as the 28th best player in his class, in the nation. - HoopMasters.com

03/13/04: "Having seen some tough roads in the past few weeks, Dayton Dunbar's Daequan Cook, provided the Wolverines all the firepower needed to advance in the OHSAA Boys Division II Basketball Tournament. Cook, scored 25 points, pulled down 7 boards along with two assists, steals and even a block during a 51 - 39 victory over Cincinnati Turpin High School at the Cintas Center." - www.ohioprepscene.com

02/16/04: "Cook is an explosive scorer who (HoopScoop's Chris) Johnson believes is the most talented player in Ohio regardless of class." - www.BuckNuts.com

1/26/04: "Daequan Cook sets his goals high. "I want to touch the top of the backboard by the time I'm out of high school," he said. "I can touch the top of the square right now."

The 6-foot-5 Dunbar sophomore has been playing basketball nearly as long as he's been known as Pooh. "My Grandma nicknamed me that when I was born," Cook said. "She thought I looked like Winnie the Pooh. People started knowing me as that and then there's no changing. It's Pooh but Grandma calls me Pooh Pooh."

Cook used to watch his uncles play at rec centers and started playing when he was 5 years old. Like millions of boys, he grew up admiring Michael Jordan. "He just made me love basketball," Cook said. "It was amazing sometimes as far as the dunks — especially the dunks."

Unlike Jordan, Cook has never been subjected to being cut from a team. Cook was 6-foot in sixth grade and has been ranked as one of Ohio's top players in his age group since seventh grade. Now ranked nationally, Cook knows arbitrary evaluations don't guarantee anything. "I don't really pay attention to it," he said. "I'll see where they talk about me on the Internet — they'll say he's good but I still need to work on something or say one of their players should be higher than me or not. I don't really say anything back because nobody can really tell the truth about a couple players until they play."

On the court, the wiry 190-pounder elevates over defenders. He's missed time because of two wrist injuries but he shows no ill effects of that. His hops enable him to grab rebounds, score inside and out and see over opponents and deliver assists. Cook averages 24 points, 11 rebounds and two assists while hitting two-thirds of his 3-pointers and 71 percent from the free throw line.

Dunbar's team is young, starting four sophomores and a freshman to begin the season. That's become four sophomores and a junior because freshman Aaron Pogue — Cook's close friend — is academically ineligible. Now, even more of the scoring load falls to Cook.

He showed what he can do in a 69-65 win over cross-town rival Colonel White. Cook scored a career-high 40 points, grabbed 17 rebounds with five assists. "It's amazing when he's in a zone; he's feeling it," said teammate Darren Powell, who averages 6.5 assists. "When he hits a couple shots in a row, the offense goes through him. That's why he got so hyped (for Colonel White), they didn't think he could do it without Aaron. Pooh showed them."

Powell said the team isn't jealous, even though the game program cover says COOK-ing with the BLUE. "We're cool with it," Powell said. "He's the reason that we're selling out."

Dunbar coach Mitchell Waterman said the sky's the limit for Cook, who is being recruited by many of the top college basketball programs. Waterman said Cook must develop more left-hand moves and better defense for college and beyond. "I've been around and I've listened to a lot of scouts," Waterman said. "My father (Ben) is a legend as far as coaching is concerned. I just have never seen anybody as good as (Cook) on offense. No one's going to stop him as far as a high school player is concerned. Most Big Ten coaches would take him right now." - Dayton Daily News

12/03/03: Listed as one of the ten best players in the state, although he is just a soph. He is also listed as the #1 soph in the state. - HoopScoop