Cook wants to get back in the game
Brian Cook was back on the bench, a spot of good news for him in an otherwise rocky few weeks.
He has fought off an upper respiratory tract infection and dealt with a brief bout of vertigo that left him clinging to the walls of the team training facility, wondering what was happening to him.
But even before that, his playing time had been almost halved.
Cook, 26, signed a three-year, $10.5-million contract extension Oct. 31, but other numbers haven’t been as comforting for him.
He has sat out eight consecutive games, some for health reasons and others because he has fallen out of Coach Phil Jackson’s rotation. Cook averaged 7.9 points and 19 minutes a game last season. He is now averaging 5.2 points and 9.9 minutes.
“I’m frustrated with my time,” Cook said. “I started 46 games, played significant minutes last season. I’m just trying to get better.
“At the same time, we’re on a roll right now. I love to win. I have to do what’s best for the team. But if he calls on me, I’ll be ready.”
“He” would be Jackson, who acknowledged Cook’s situation before Wednesday’s game against New Orleans.
“I’m looking for places to put Brian in the ballgame, but Ronny [Turiaf] is playing well coming off the bench in a big man’s role,” Jackson said. “He’s frustrated about not playing, but ... he knows that I’m looking for situations to put him in.”
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Jackson and Commissioner David Stern agree on something: The new ball could use some retooling.
Stern told the New York Times he would address players’ concerns with Spalding, the ball’s manufacturer, which would be fine with Jackson.
“My assistant coaches just passing the ball to the players, their hands are breaking down, they’re getting cracked fingers over this ball,” Jackson said. “It’s just a totally different substance than playing with a leather ball. Without harping on it, I’m glad the commissioner is at least capable of being changeable, as President Bush is on his stance in Iraq.”
The ball, changed from a leather surface to a microfiber composite, has drawn criticism from players since it was introduced during training camp.
“It has changed a lot of what we do in a game,” Jackson said. “I noticed Kobe [Bryant] lost the ball on a dribble the other night -- went between his legs twice and the ball bopped off his hands and out of bounds. ...
“I know players are complaining about it because it comes off the floor differently because it’s more of a rubberized surface than leather surface and, therefore, it carries the spin of the floor, the backboard, the rim, much more intense than a normal leather ball would.”
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Lamar Odom became the seventh-fastest player to collect 4,000 rebounds and 2,000 assists in his career. Odom did it in 471 career games, behind only Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Elgin Baylor, Larry Bird, Tom Gola, Oscar Robertson and Chris Webber.
