Well there's already a lot being written about lowry, but i dont think a lot of fans are familiar with Cook. He was a solid bench guy when he was with the lakers, but he's been a forgotten man since, but that's only because he's been buried on the bench behind Dwight Howard and Hedo. his talents are limited, but specific and consistent, so you know what to expect and i'm sure that's why Morey likes him. Think of him as another novak, but with a better inside game, a bit more athletic and a bit better defensively. He's pretty much what fans hoped Novak could become. He's from Illinois and i believe he played with Luther in college for a year or two. He was the 24th pick of the '03 draft. Here's a vid: <object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/t2YiSL6yH0E&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/t2YiSL6yH0E&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object> He shots 45% FG, 40% from downton and 80% FT. He gets about half a block a game, which isn't bad considering he plays only 10-15 mins a game.
and we all loved novak He really isn't athletic, his dunks are low, he's all arms, but those are very long arms...for the role he would play here i think he's perfect. Only problem is he'd be overpaid, but with bargains like Hayes and Scola, i think it balances out.
i remember seeing him in LA. he has a good shot. havent heard about him in a couple of years. maybe he can come in and play some minutes, spread the floor and hit the 3
6'9", 250 lbs and an excellent three point shooter with an attractive contract. I don't get why people are complaining about him so much. He's big enough to theoretically be another 'big body' even though we all know he's soft, and a good enough shooter to possibly make a difference if his numbers called. Not a bad option to have on your bench. P.S. Were he and Luther college teammates? My memory is a little rusty tonight after all the commotion of the past few days.
My guess is he doesn't play much because his defense is horrible, mostly due to his poor athleticism. Too bad. If he was even decent at that end of the court, he would be a great fit at the other end next to Yao. As is, he and Yao would be roughly a couple of pylons on defense. To be fair though, that is pretty much what Scola and Landry are right now.
dude, Morey took him mainly because salaries has to be within 80% or 125% of each other. I'm sorry to break the truth, but cook ain't gonna play at all for the rockets, with luis, landry, chuck, and mutombo all ahead of him in the rotation.
i didnt write that Morey pursued him or asked for cook to be included specifically, but Morey mentioned it in one of his interviews. I think it was just a nice bonus that the guy who had to be inluded to make the deal work could play a small, but available role for Houston. And Cook can play SF/PF/C, all those guys you mentioned were ahead of Novak in the rotation as well, but he still got his number called here and there and came through for the team. Tmac's absence frees up 30+ minutes, wafer might take most of those, but i find it hard to believe there isn't 4-5 minutes available for Cook. Like i said, his skills are clearly defined and consistent, he's not a guy you throw in and hope he brings it tonight in some way, he's a guy you throw in for a few minutes to add some shooting and when guys are cold because you know he'll bring his jumper almost every night.
Well to look at it optimistically, he adds something we didnt have...a big man that can space the floor and hit the three. I imagine he will be the third man off the bench at the 4 spot. Remember Landry is probably out for tommorows game, so maybe he gets some time?
