Xavier Cooks is in his third season with the Sydney Kings but due to injuries has played only 26 games over his NBL career, averaging 9 points, 8 rebounds and 2 assists per game since entering the league in 2019.
This season, with a full bill of health, Cooks is having a career-best season, averaging 13 points, 9 rebounds and 3 assists while leading Sydney to a top-five record thus far.
He joins Aussie Hoopla's Dan Boyce to talk about the teams big win over the Perth Wildcats this week, his decision to play college basketball and overseas by debuting in the NBL, his experiences with the Australian Boomers and plenty more.
He also takes us through the ups and downs he faced dealing with his injuries which kept him out of the Australian Boomers in 2019 and has impacted his ability to play at his best in the NBL.
Topics include... The Kings win over the Wildcats and the altercation between Matt Hodgson and Dejan Vasiljevic (2:00) How injuries have impacted his past seasons and how being fully healthy has led him to his best NBL season so far (4:00) Thoughts on being an under the radar talent until making the Australian Boomers squad in 2019 (5:30) His decision to play college basketball and why Winthorp University was the best choice for him (6:30) NBA opportunities with the Golden State Warriors and Phoenix Suns (9:00) Playing overseas in Germany and France instead of the NBL for his first professional season (10:30) Making the Australian Boomers World Cup squad in 2019 but missing out due to injury and how it impacted him (14:00) Learning from coaches Will Weaver, Adam Forde and Chase Buford (19:00) His views on the Kings decision to forfeit the remaining games of the 2020 NBL Finals due to COVID (20:00) Being a part of the Boomers squad who defeated the USA in the Olympic warm-up games (22:00) The highlights and hurdles from Xaviers career so far (24:00) Visit dunk.com.au for your next set of basketball uniforms.Listen to our previous interviews with the biggest stars in Australian Basketball, head to Aussiehoopla.com. Check out previous podcasts featuring; Australian Basketball Legends - Luc Longley, Andrew Gaze, Shane Heal, Mark Bradtke, Leroy Loggins, David Andersen, Andrew Vlahov, Phil Smyth, CJ Bruton, Chris Anstey, Brett Maher, John Rillie, Tony Ronaldson, Damian Martin, AJ Ogilvy, Daniel Kickert
Current NBL Stars - Bryce Cotton, Chris Goulding, Vic Law, Jack White, Dejan Vasiljevic, Thomas Abercrombie, Jason Cadee, Mitch McCarron, Anthony Drmic, Brad Newley, Dusty Hannahs
Our Finest Coaching Minds - Brian Goorjian, Barry Barnes, Joey Wright, Adrian Hurley, Aaron Fearne, Rob Beveridge, Ian Stacker, Shawn Dennis, Dean Vickerman, Trevor Gleeson, Lindsey Gaze, Ken Cole, Will Weaver, Bruce Palmer
NBA Stars Past & Present - Andrew Bogut, Matthew Dellavedova, Stephen Jackson, Randy Livingston, Torrey Craig, Acie Earl, Josh Childress, Reggie Smith, Todd Lichti, Ryan Broekhoff, Doug Overton, Donald Sloan
The NBL's Greatest Imports - Darryl McDonald, Ricky Grace, Derek Rucker, Leon Trimmingham, Scott Fisher, Lanard Copeland, Mike Mitchell, Darnell Mee, Isaac Burton, Adonis Jordan, Shawn Redhage, Willie Farley, Al Green, Corey "Homicide" Williams, Andre Moore, Steve Woodberry, Gary Ervin, Ebi Ere, Doug Overton, Kevin Lisch
And the men who run things - Larry Kestelman, Mal Speed, Paul Maley, Vince Crivelli, Jeremy Loeliger, Chuck Harmison, Jeff Van Groningen, Bob Turner
All that and much more.
Follow @AussieHoopla on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or email us at info@aussiehoopla.com
