NBL26: Sydney Kings captain Xavier Cooks reveals ‘pressure’ that comes with building a super team

A playing list bolstered with the likes of NBA champion and ex-Melbourne United stalwart Matthew Dellevadova and former Adelaide 36ers star Kendric Davis, the Kings head into the season with a weight of expectation on their shoulders.

Despite pre-season not officially tipping off until the middle of August, the trio have already started to dial in to each other’s on court presence, swapping the Sydney shores for San Francisco for a short but sweet off-season training program and leadership seminar all together.

Dellavedova, a veteran point guard chasing that elusive NBL title to add to his NBA ring meanwhile Davis, an electric guard that teams are built around, is hitting his prime.

A tale of two “very vastly different” superstars, for anyone thinking how the ‘Delly’ and Davis dynamic is going to play out, Cooks has reassured that “they’re both just super talented players and they’ll figure it out.”

“That’s what makes basketball teams awesome,” Cooks told Code Sports.

“You’re forced to bring people from different backgrounds with different personality traits together and force them to mesh.”

The former NBL MVP remained in Australia for the first time this off-season, rather than engaging in European or NBA opportunities, and says that the chance to link up with a number of Kings players - including Kouat Noi and Jaylin Galloway - across the winter is going to work wonders for the team.

With the hope to build a stronger bond with a core group who are committed to the long term plan, to become an extra string to their bow as they strive for the NBL championship.

Time afforded is quite rare across professional basketball.

“It always feels like you put a team together and it’s like a temporary build,” Cooks said.

“Some imports, for example, come in for a six-month contract, and it is kind of just like a little hire job.

“Now we’ve got a bunch of guys on three-year contracts, so they’re really invested in it.

“Normally, right when the season’s done, you go pack up on your ride, go play for a different team.

“Whereas if they’re around in the off season you can work on these bonds, you can work on the connections.

“To be able to have those uncomfortable conversations with people, you’ve got to have that kind of foundation and that kind of connection with each other.”

The vastly different personalities won’t be exclusive to the playing group this season though, with Australian basketball icon Andrew Bogut joining Brian Goorjian’s coaching team for the first time.

His coaching abilities are yet to be tested, and Cooks “wasn’t really sure” what to expect, but the “smart arse humour” is a trait that he’s really enjoyed having around so far.

“I’m not sure how he’ll go with the team dynamic but he’s just such a high IQ person, you can really tell that he’s going to be awesome for us,” Cooks said.

The NBL champion this week finds himself in a different environment, currently representing the Boomers at the FIBA Asia Cup in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

A team mixed with familiar faces like Cooks, Jack McVeigh and Jack White alongside rising talents including Dash Daniels, Reyne Smith and Owen Foxwell.

His first Asia Cup appearance in the green and gold, Cooks is looking forward to the opportunity to engage more of a leadership role with the national team, but admits it’s a completely different approach to leading his Kings.

“I fill a leadership role in Sydney because I feel like I’ve been here for a long time and I’ve gotten the resume for it,” Cooks said.

“It’s (Boomers) a transitional period where I feel like a lot of the older heads like Patty (Patty Mills) and Delly are kind of ageing out and these Cups are good for us to learn, get to know each other and work on our leadership roles.

“It’s easy to lead in my opinion when you’re around the Sydney Kings, you’re there for eight months, you know all the ins and outs.

“But these kinds of camps are only two or three weeks and it’s not like these guys are our development players, they’re their own stars in their own team.

“So it’s a little bit of a different type of role that mentally, I struggle with a little bit, but I’m excited for it.”

And if there’s pressure to see gold after the Opals took out their respective Asia Cup title.

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The Boomers have won their first two games against Korea and Lebanon, with their final group stage match up with Qatar on Sunday evening at 6pm AEST.