Former NBA guard Quinn Cook has shared a frustrating experience from his time with the Atlanta Hawks, revealing that the organization encouraged him to find a permanent place to live before waiving him on the same day he moved in.
Cook explained that he had been staying in a hotel while trying to secure a roster spot. Although he wanted a more comfortable living arrangement, his previous experiences of being released by NBA teams made him hesitant to commit to a home.
“The GM’s like, ‘Man, you should get a crib out here.’ You know what I’m saying? I live in a hotel. I’m like, ‘Bro, you sure?’ Because I’m tired of living in a hotel, but I also been cut numerous times. So I’m like, ‘Bro, you sure, bro?’”
According to Cook, his agent also reassured him that his chances of remaining with Atlanta were extremely high.
“So my agent like, ‘Yeah, bro, you 99 percent, you going to make the team. They going to love you, I mean, they love you,’ blah, blah, blah.”
However, Cook remained concerned about the small possibility that something could change before his contract became guaranteed.
“I’m like, ‘What’s the other one percent, though? You ain’t say 100. You said 99.’ They like, ‘Man, if a trade happens… you good…’”
Eventually, Cook decided to move forward with finding a home. He arranged to move in on a team off day, just one day before his contract was scheduled to become guaranteed.
“Finally get my spot. Moving day, we had an off day, and my contract was guaranteed the next day. I go in there and nobody really say nothing to me. It’s a regular day. I move all my stuff. I had my brother come down. We mounting TVs, we picking up drawers and beds, putting everything together.”
After spending the day getting settled, Cook finally had an opportunity to relax. However, the moment was interrupted when he noticed his agent calling.
“And we finally did it. I put my favorite movie on. I put my feet up. I literally look at my phone and my agent was calling. I’m like, ‘I ain’t even answering that,’ you know what I’m saying?”
Cook initially ignored the call but eventually answered after his agent tried again. He was informed that Atlanta had made a trade and needed to waive him.
“Called again. I answered. They was like, make the trade, they had to waive you. Just sleep on it. Sleep on it. That’s the first day where I wanted to quit…”
The news was particularly difficult for Cook because he had just committed to a new home after receiving assurances about his future with the team.
However, his situation changed dramatically the following morning when Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr attempted to contact him.
“And I wake up, I had like 10 missed calls from Steve Kerr. So I got cut by the worst team, and then I got signed by the best team the next day. And then we won the chip the next year. So that was the best year ever.”
