Omar Cook

Omar -Sharif Cook ( born January 28, 1982 in Brooklyn, New York City ) is a native American professional basketball player. Cook, who was drafted after only one year in the NCAA in 2001, played several seasons in the NBA Development League and came just short-term contracts in the most highly endowed professional league NBA. In 2005 he moved to Europe, first played in Belgium, Russia, France and Serbia. After three seasons in the Spanish ACB league he plays from the 2011/12 season in the Italian Serie A for Olimpia Milano. Since 2008, Cook has Montenegrin citizenship and has performed internationally at for his adopted country, including in the finals of the European Basketball Championship 2011 in Lithuania.

Career

North America ( to 2005)

Cook played during his studies at St. John's University in his hometown for the high school team Red Storm in the NCAA Division I. After only a year he enlisted 2001 NBA Draft, and broke off his studies. The Orlando Magic, who had 31 players selected as Cook overall in the draft, negotiate a swap with the Denver Nuggets, who henceforth had the NBA rights to Cook. For the Nuggets to Cook could fight no place in the squad season and played for the Fayetteville Patriots from now in the newly created Development League of the NBA. With the Patriots he reached the finals of the Development League, which were lost to the Mobile Revelers, which were then set as a franchise in 2003. Cook got the meantime repeatedly contracts with NBA clubs, so November-December 2001 as a free agent with the Dallas Mavericks; only during two short-term contracts with the Portland Trail Blazers in February 2004, he completed his first seventeen appearances in the NBA, followed in April 2005, five more for the Toronto Raptors.

Start in Europe (2005 to 2008)

For the season 2005 /06, Cook moved to Europe and signed a contract with Belgian first division club Dexia Mons Hainaut from the Walloon. Along with, among others, which also later naturalized in Poland Americans Thomas Kelati he achieved the greatest success of this club with the title win in the national cup competition and reaching the finals series for the championship that was lost against the Flemish Association Telindus Oostende. He then moved in 2006 to the Russian Super League to ZSK WWS to Samara. After winning the title then set European club competition FIBA EuroCup Challenge he left in April 2007, the club and changed for the Championship play-offs in the French LNB Pro A to Strasbourg, where you eliminated against giants ASVEL in the first round. In the following season 2007/ 08 Cook acted for the Serbian vice-champion KK Crvena Zvezda (English: KK Red Star ) from the capital, Belgrade, in addition to the Serbian league in the Adriatic League and the ULEB Cup in 2007 / 08, where in the second round eliminated. At the end of the season he took in June 2008, the Montenegrin citizenship in order henceforth to play internationally for this country.

ACB league (2008 to 2011)

Cook signed for the season 2008/ 09 a two-year contract in the Spanish ACB League at Unicaja in Malaga, where he again played together in the first season with Thomas Kelati. The Andalusian club he failed twice in the semifinal series of the Championship play-offs at FC Barcelona. In the cup competition, Copa del Rey in 2009, they lost the final game with just two points against the Basque club TAU Ceramica. In the highest European League ULEB Euro League would retire twice in the second round of the sixteen best teams. Cook was appointed in the ACB Player of the Month in February 2010 and was associated with an average of nearly six assists per game, both best assist provider in the league ACB and in the ULEB Euro League in the season 2009/10. In the season 2010/11 he moved to league rivals and reigning ULEB Eurocup title holder Power Electronics Valencia. With this club he reached the quarter-finals this time series of the ULEB Euro Cup 2010/ 11, which went against the national competitors Real Madrid lost. With the Montenegrin national team, he participated in the finals of the European Basketball Championship 2011 in Lithuania, where one by one opening win in extra time to eventual semi-finalists Macedonia lost the remaining four preliminary round games and left early.

Series A and return to the ACB league ( since 2011 )

In the season 2011/12 Cook signed with EA7 - Emporio Armani in Milan. In the national championship they entered the final series, in which one series champion Montepaschi Siena defeated. In the ULEB Euro League 2011/12 we missed the play-off quarter-final series only just because of the poorer direct comparison. The following season, however, one difference in the ULEB Euro League 2012/13 in the preliminary round and Milan broke the contract with Cook, who then moved just returned to Spain Caja Laboral Vitoria -Gasteiz, in the Euro League preliminary round group nor to Milan were recruited by the next round.