It’s hard to win a championship in the NBA. Although title success is mostly attributed to the stars of that team, it takes a lot out of every player on that 15-man roster to ensure a championship comes home to the franchise. Contributing as a member in a championship rotation is an honor for players, with the reputation from that alone leading to future opportunities in the NBA.
That wasn’t the case for Quinn Cook, who won championships with the Golden State Warriors (2018) and the Los Angeles Lakers (2020), but found himself out of the NBA by the end of 2021. His last NBA contract came with the Cleveland Cavaliers as an emergency mid-season signing, before he started playing overseas basketball.
While reminiscing about his time in the NBA, the now 33-year-old Cook shared a realization on Threads that his NBA career fizzling out might be the result of his agent not doing his job well.
“I was just here thinking… I went to three straight NBA finals. Was the leading scorer off the bench in my two years in Golden State and really contributed. Barely played with the Lakers, but won two rings in three years… I never was on a guaranteed contract after that lol….. My agent stunk lmaoooo.”
Cook went undrafted in the 2015 NBA draft, spending two seasons in the D League before making his NBA debut with the Dallas Mavericks in February 2017. He’d also have a small stint with the New Orleans Pelicans that same season, before joining the Warriors in the 2017 offseason. He’d earn a two-year contract by April 2018, averaging 7.7 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.9 assists in 107 games over two seasons with the franchise.
He won the 2018 Championship with the Warriors and went to the Finals in 2019, averaging 4.5 points, 1.2 rebounds, and 0.7 assists in 34 games over two seasons in the Playoffs. He played a small role but was a contributor to those Warriors squads.
The Warriors would let him walk in free agency before the 2019-20 season, when Cook signed with the Lakers in their first season with the LeBron James and Anthony Davis duo. Cook averaged 4.3 points, 0.9 rebounds, and 0.9 assists in 60 games with the Lakers across two seasons, and averaged 2.2 points in six appearances in the 2020 title run.
He returned to the Lakers for the 2020-21 season but was waived by February 2021. He’d sign a ten-day contract with the Cavaliers that same season, but would never get an opportunity in the league again. Cook averaged 6.4 points in 188 regular-season games over his NBA career.
Cook’s agent at the time his NBA career fizzled out was Mark Bartelstein of Priority Sports, who’s also represented Bradley Beal, Bobby Portis Jr., and over 50 other active NBA players. Considering the contracts Bartelstein negotiated for Beal and Gordon Hayward over their careers, it’s hard to agree with Cook’s assessment of his agent. However, Cook’s experiences with his agent probably formed this opinion as well.
The archetype of a small scoring guard went out of style in the NBA quickly, especially if they weren’t dead-eye three-point shooters. Cook likely fell victim to this change in the NBA’s scouting philosophies, but he has since enjoyed a good overseas career, playing in China most recently.
