He has a ton of stories and some great insight from along. But unlike his contemporary lebron james, cooke went undrafted and faded into obscurity. Legend of schea cotton lives on with former nba stars. There is a book in the making about lenny cooke, and it will have nouns and. Cooke dazzled the packed gym and set up a showdown between him and a lesserknown player who was generating interest and who was one grade behind. Yes, in a period when lebron james and carmelo anthony, as well as several other nba superstars, were in high school, this guy was the number one ranked high school basketball player in america. This is also a must read and a must share for any compliance professional looking to share an educational example with your elite sas. Once one of the top basketball prospects in the country, lenny cooke went from cant miss to never was. Meet the high school basketball player who was once. Alphabetical player list july 7, 2001 while abcd is media friendly theres a limit to all of the friendliness, and when it. Lenny cooke has all the talent in the world, says queens basketball consultant rob johnson. At one point he was considered one of the top recruits in the country, along with rival contemporaries like lebron james, carmelo anthony, and. There is no more frequently told tale than the game where the sloping paths of lenny cooke and lebron james crossed in 2001.
Keep that in mind while tracking where a kid is ranked and who is recruiting him. Lenny cooke, a 66 wing forward from northern valley high school in old tappan, new jersey, wore a boston celtics jersey with the number 31 at the recent xaverianbishop loughlin game. Former high school phenom lenny cooke has joined the abas. It was lenny cooke, the superstar from brooklyn, and lebron james, this apparently superhuman 16yearold from akron. Well be looking at the class of 19992008, the last 10 classes that have finished the five years they are. Being a 5star recruit back in college means nothing once you make it. Lenny cooke opens up about the final chapter of his playing career. Lenny cooke is a documentary about the quick rise, and dramatic downward spiral, of an early 2000s high school basketball standout from brooklyn with aspirations of being a first round. Leonard cooke born april 29, 1982 is an american former high school and professional. By continuing to browse this site, you agree to this use. Former top basketball prospect lenny cooke tells innercity kids about the. Lenny cooke the startobe who never was boiler bylaws. Lenny cooke was alone, opportunities were slipping away. Yes, in a period when lebron james and carmelo anthony, as well as several other nba superstars.
After a screening in toronto, several raptors said there was much to be learned from cooke s story. Thats when lenny cooke, the nations top junior, becomes eligible for old tappan when they play demerest northern valley regional demerest, n. Lenny cooke was once more hyped than lebron james, but never played in the league. Quick question who is the worst recruiting bust, you can remember. Lenny cooke is famous for being the guy who was supposedly better than lebron james. In an era when high school stars were forgoing college hoops in favor of nba contracts, lenny was poised to be a superstar.
The 38 top recruiting software tools of 2020 ideal. Portions of content provided by tivo corporation 2020 tivo corporation whats new. Cooke is the subject of the 20 tribeca film festival selected documentary film lenny cooke by the safdie brothers. Cooke was a highly regarded young basketball player in high school, in the various basketball camps, and the aau and tournaments. Cooke was a highly regarded young basketball player in high school, in the. What is this talk of lenny cooke, is playing with the celts summer league this summer. Lebron got the better of him that day, and from then on, their. With lenny cooke, tom konchalski, lebron james, carmelo anthony. Lenny cooke, the gifted 66 small forward from northern valley h. Lenny cooke professional and college basketball forums.
Recruiting software helps recruiters manage the entire recruitment processfrom posting jobs to onboarding new hireswith one, easy to use system. Hes in a similar position to deshawn stevenson, who. He knows whats at stake if he cant get into a college program, and, its. The right advice is paramount in making good decisions. Scouted by several top programs, he eventually signed with. In 2001, cooke was the numberone ranked high school basketball player in america, with future nba greats lebron james and carmelo anthony listed beneath him. Jonathan abrams on lenny cooke and the nbas preptopro era. A guy who you thought would be a superstar, but never made a real big impact in college or the pros. Lenny cooke, from startobe to one who never was the. Cooke won mvp of the prestigious adidas abcd camp in 2000, was the no. Lenny cooke is humbling, as well as a cautionary tale for young people thinking they can make the big time. Filmmaker adam shopkorn chronicled cooke s rise in. Lenny cooke has yet to discover what or who he is supposed to be since it became obvious years ago that he would not fulfill his once presumed destiny and become an n.
The story of lenny cooke has been told on many occasions and on many outlets including in documentary form which was released years back and can still be seen today. Cooke has exhausted his high school eligibility, is 19 years old maybe older and will still have one more year of school just to be able to qualify, so he will go to a prep school this fall. More sports penn states latest run of recruiting offers include. Lenny cooke more than a decade ago, many people were predicting that lenny cooke would be the biggest thing to come out of high school. The agents and scouts stopped calling, the neighborhood leeches who had expected a big payday drifted away. Now hes telling his story to kids so they dont make the same mistakes he made. Lenny cooke was the numberone ranked high school basketball player in america. A lawsuit by his parents against the ncaa cleared the way for him to join alabamas basketball program for the 19992000 season, part of a recruiting class that included erwin dudley. Lenny cooke, a documentary that premiered this month at the tribeca film festival, takes stock of the latest, least eventful period of cooke s career and turns it into one of. Lenny s draftability if lenny cooke opts for the nba, hes got a good chance of sneaking into the first round of the draft based on his potential alone. But his head wasnt screwed on right, and nba people knew that. We highly encourage readers to give the documentary a watch as it shows cooke. Mark mayemura and david benezra are the editors of the recruiting usa website. Also included is a profile of top recruit lenny cooke, one of the many.
The term recruiting software refers to a category of software. Top point guards top shooting guards top small forwards top power forwards top centers recruiting. Fifteen years ago, lenny cooke seemed to be a player of infinite promise. Lenny cooke 2002 4 star small forward for demarest old tappan, nj on. To subscribe to their website and get daily recruiting information, call 818. Meet the high school basketball player who was considered better than lebron james this is the story of lenny cooke, a high school basketball player who was ranked higher than lebron. Lenny cooke documentary makes an impression on toronto.
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