In 2001, Lenny Cooke was considered one of the best high school players in the country. ESPN ranked him second behind Carmelo Anthony among high school seniors and ahead of future NBA players like Chris Bosh, Amar'e Stoudemire, and Raymond Felton.
So when Cooke faced an up-and-coming junior from Akron named LeBron James in the tournament's championship game, his team was expected to win, and Lenny needed to dominate. However, the St.Vincent-St.Mary star flipped the script and wrote his own ending.
Former ABCD Camp Director was recently on Entirely NBA's podcast and gave his first-hand account of the events in that 2001 tournament.
"Lenny actually had a good camp at ABCD," said Luchey. "The problem is, when he matched up with LeBron, LeBron didn't have the stronger team. Lenny Cooke had Paul Davis on that team, he had some others. And then Lenny was a grade above him, like two or three years older than him from an age standpoint."
Big Dog Shot
According to Luchey, when LeBron and Lenny matched up in that game, Cooke had the better team. But the 6'6'' forward ended up playing a subpar game, scoring just nine points. Meanwhile, the 'Young King' stole the show.
Not only did LeBron score 24 points in that game, he hit a big-time shot when it mattered most. With his team down two, Luchey said it would have been easy for James to drive to the basket, score a layup, or get fouled and make two free throws to send the game to a sudden death OT. But no, 'Bron took a long three-pointer to win the game outright. The game-winner was one thing, but the scene after he had made it was even more significant.
"It was also the atmosphere with it. Like, 'Hey man, this is a big dog shot right here. This is a big dog right here. And that, it just kind of hovered over Lenny. That right there just hovered over him the rest of the camp because that was brewing…It almost like, it's like it took the soul out of Lenny Cooke after that experience," added Luchey.
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LeBron ended Lenny's career
Cooke finished camp with averages of 16.5 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.1 steals, and 0.9 blocks per game. However, James went home after establishing himself as the best prospect in the country. And that was essentially it for Lenny's basketball career.
Schools like Seton Hall, North Carolina, and St. John's were linked to Cooke. However, he was ineligible to play college ball due to academic issues. Lenny was left to play in tournaments and pick-up games, and his HS eligibility was also thoroughly exhausted. He declared for the 2002 NBA Draft but went undrafted.
The closest to the NBA that Lenny got was when he played for the Celtics' 2003 Summer League team. After that, the New Jersey native played overseas. Meanwhile, LeBron entered the 2003 NBA Draft as the most highly-touted prospect of all time. The rest, as they say, is history, and history continues to be made as LBJ is set to play in his 22nd NBA season.
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