Sharife Omar Cooper (born June 11, 2001) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

player for

JDA Dijon Jeanne d'Arc Dijon Basket, commonly known as JDA Dijon Basket or simply Dijon, is a professional basketball club from the city of Dijon, France. The club currently plays in the LNB Pro A, the French French basketball league system, first tier divis ...

of the French

LNB Pro A LNB may refer to: Sport * Liga Nacional de Baloncesto, a professional basketball league in the Dominican Republic * Liga Nacional de Básquetbol, an Argentine basketball league * Liga Nacional de Básquetbol (Paraguay), Liga Nacional de Básquetb ...

. He played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the

Auburn Tigers The Auburn Tigers are the athletic teams representing Auburn University, a public four-year university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. The Auburn Tigers compete in Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) a ...

High school career

In his

freshman A freshman, fresher, first year, or colloquially frosh, is a person in the first year at an educational institution, usually a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational in ...

season in 2016–17, Cooper averaged 16 points and 4.4 assists per game, leading

McEachern High School John McEachern High School or McEachern High School is a public high school established in 1933 in Powder Springs, Georgia, United States. It was originally established as the Seventh District Agricultural and Mechanical School. Due to its histo ...

Powder Springs, Georgia Powder Springs is a city in Cobb County, Georgia, United States. The population was 13,940 at the 2010 census, with an estimated population for 2019 of 15,758. The 12,000-capacity Walter H. Cantrell Stadium is located in Powder Springs. It is ...

to a 29–1 record and an appearance in the

Georgia High School Association The Georgia High School Association (GHSA) is an organization that governs athletics and activities for member high schools in Georgia, USA. GHSA is a member of the National Federation of State High School Associations. The association has 46 ...

(GHSA) Class 7A state semifinals. The following year, he led the Indians to a state quarterfinals appearance while posting a 26–3 record. He received considerable media attention in December 2017 for his 42-point performance against

Jahvon Quinerly Jahvon Quinerly (born November 25, 1998) is a former American college basketball player, who previously played for the Memphis Tigers, Villanova Wildcats and Alabama Crimson Tide. High school career Quinerly attended Hudson Catholic Regional Hi ...

and nationally ranked

Hudson Catholic Regional High School Hudson Catholic Regional High School is a regional four-year co-educational University-preparatory Catholic high school in Jersey City, in Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. The school was established in 1964 by the Roman Catholic ...

in the quarterfinals of the City of Palms Classic. He scored the game-winning buzzer-beater in an 83–81

overtime Overtime is the amount of time someone works beyond normal working hours. The term is also used for the pay received for this time. Normal hours may be determined in several ways: *by custom (what is considered healthy or reasonable by society) ...

victory. As a

junior Junior or Juniors may refer to: Aircraft * Ekolot JK-05L Junior, a Polish ultralight aircraft * PZL-112 Junior, a Polish training aircraft * SZD-51 Junior, a Polish-made training and club glider Arts and entertainment Characters * Bowser Jr., ...

in 2018–19, Cooper led McEachern to a perfect 32–0 record and the first state title in school history while averaging 27.2 points, 8.1 assists, 5.6 rebounds and 4.3 steals per game. In the title-game win over Meadowcreek, he scored 20 points and dished four assists as McEachern finished ranked No. 1 in three national polls. He picked up

most valuable player In team sports, a most valuable player (MVP) award is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particular competition, or ...

(MVP) honors at several tournaments, including the City of Palms Classic and Tournament of Champions. After the season, he was named ''USA Today'' All-USA Player of the Year, MaxPreps National Player of the Year, Mr. Georgia Basketball, and Georgia's

Gatorade Player of the Year The Gatorade Player of the Year awards are given annually to up and coming high school student-athletes in the United States. They are given for boys baseball, boys and girls basketball, boys and girls cross country, boys football, boys and girl ...

. He also earned ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...

'' All-USA first team and Naismith All-American second team honors. Cooper was selected to play in the

2020 McDonald's All-American Boys Game The 2020 McDonald's All-American Boys Game was an all-star basketball game that was scheduled to be played on Wednesday, April 1, 2020, at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas, home of the Houston Rockets. The game's rosters featured the best and ...

on January 23, 2020. On May 6, 2021, Cooper's #2 high school jersey number was retired at McEachern where he was honored as the most decorated male basketball player in school history.

Recruiting

A consensus five-star recruit, Cooper was considered one of the top prospects in his class. On September 27, 2019, he committed to play

for Auburn, becoming the highest-ranked recruit and the second five-star recruit in program history.

College career

Cooper missed the first 12 games of his freshman season due to a

National Collegiate Athletic Association The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates College athletics in the United States, student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, and Simon Fraser University, 1 in Canada. ...

investigation into his eligibility. During that time, he explored professional options. On January 9, 2021, he made his Auburn debut, recording 26 points, nine assists and four rebounds in a 94–90 loss to

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

. Four days later, Cooper posted a season-high 28 points, 12 assists and five rebounds in a 95–77 win over

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

. As a freshman, he averaged 20.2 points, 8.1 assists and 4.3 rebounds per game through 12 appearances, earning

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central United States, South Central and Southeastern United States. Its 16 members in ...

All-Freshman Team honors. On April 2, 2021, Cooper declared for the

2021 NBA draft The 2021 NBA draft, the 75th edition of the National Basketball Association's annual NBA draft, draft, was held on July 29, 2021, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, Brooklyn, New York. The NBA draft returned to Brooklyn after 2020 NBA draft, the pre ...

, forgoing his remaining college eligibility.

Professional career

Atlanta Hawks (2021–2022)

Cooper was selected in the second round of the

with the 48th pick by the

Atlanta Hawks The Atlanta Hawks are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta. The Hawks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Easte ...

. On August 5, 2021, he signed a

two-way contract A two-way contract is a professional sports contract that stipulates that an athlete's salary is dependent upon the league in which the athlete is assigned to play. This is opposed to a one-way contract that would pay the same salary regardless o ...

with the Hawks, splitting time with their

NBA G League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the Minor league#Basketball, developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of ...

affiliate, the

College Park Skyhawks The College Park Skyhawks are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in College Park, Georgia, and are affiliated with the Atlanta Hawks. The Skyhawks play their home games at Gateway Center Arena at College Park af ...

. He played for the Hawks in the

2021 NBA Summer League The 2021 NBA Summer League was an off-season competition held by the National Basketball Association (NBA) at the Thomas and Mack Center and Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas, Nevada on the campus of University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The summer league c ...

, recording 11 points on 5–11 shooting, and 6 assists in 28 minutes at his debut in a 85–83 loss against the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NBA), Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), ...

. Cooper made his NBA debut in the Hawks' season opener against the

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Divisi ...

, going 0-for-3 from the field in a 113–87 win. Cooper joined the Hawks'

2022 NBA Summer League The 2022 NBA Summer League, also branded as the NBA 2K23 Summer League 2022, was an off-season competition held by the National Basketball Association (NBA) primarily at the Thomas and Mack Center and Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas, Nevada on the cam ...

roster. On July 22, 2022, Cooper re-signed with the Hawks on another two-way deal. He was waived three days later.

Cleveland Charge (2022–2024)

On September 20, 2022, Cooper signed with the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers, often referred to as the Cavs, are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division (NBA), Central Divis ...

, but was waived on October 15. On October 24, he joined the

Cleveland Charge The Cleveland Charge are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Cleveland, and are affiliated with the Cleveland Cavaliers. Since 2024, the team plays its home games at Public Auditorium in downtown Cleveland, thoug ...

's training camp roster. Cooper was named to the G League's inaugural Next Up Game for the 2022–23 season. In July 2023, Cooper joined the

for the

2023 NBA Summer League The 2023 NBA Summer League (branded as ''NBA 2K, NBA 2K24'' Summer League 2023 for sponsorship reasons) was an off-season competition held by the National Basketball Association (NBA) primarily at the Thomas and Mack Center and Cox Pavilion in Las ...

and on September 13, 2023, he re-signed with the Cavaliers. However, he was waived on October 21 and one week later re-signed with the Charge. On February 26, 2024, Cooper signed a 10-day contract with the Cavaliers, although he failed to make an appearance. On March 7, he returned to the Charge.

Liaoning Flying Leopards (2024)

On April 1, 2024, Cooper signed with the

Liaoning Flying Leopards The Liaoning Flying Leopards (), also known as the Liaoning Shenyang Sansheng Flying Leopard Club or Liaoning Bengang (), are a Chinese professional basketball team based in Hunnan District, Shenyang, Liaoning, which plays in the Northern Divisi ...

of the

Chinese Basketball Association The Chinese Basketball Association (), often abbreviated as the CBA, is the first-tier men's professional basketball league in China. The league is commonly known by fans as the CBA, and this acronym is even used in Chinese on a regular basis ...

(CBA). He helped the Flying Leopards win the 2024 CBA championship, recording 22 points, nine assists, and six rebounds off the bench in their title-clinching Game 4 victory over the

Xinjiang Flying Tigers The Xinjiang Flying Tigers () is a professional basketball team based in Ürümqi, Xinjiang, China. The team plays its home games at the Urumqi Olympic Sports Center, which has a capacity for 12,000 spectators. The club joined the Chinese Bas ...

Yukatel Merkezefendi Belediyesi (2024)

On September 28, 2024, Cooper signed with Yukatel Merkezefendi Belediyesi of the Turkish

Basketball Super League Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

(BSL).

Aris Thessaloniki (2024–2025)

On November 21, 2024, Cooper moved to Greek club

Aris Aris or ARIS may refer to: People * Aris (surname) Given name * Aris Alexandrou, Greek writer * Aris Brimanis, ice hockey player * Aris Christofellis, Greek male soprano * Aris Gavelas, Greek sprinter * Aris Konstantinidis, Greek architect * ...

for the rest of the season.

JDA Dijon (2025–present)

On April 9, 2025, Cooper signed with French club

of the

Career statistics

NBA

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Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

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CBA

, - , style="text-align:left;", 2023–24 , style="text-align:left;",

, 7 , , 0 , , 13.6 , , .467 , , .400 , , .731 , , 2.3 , , 3.3 , , .3 , , .1 , , 11.6

College

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2020–21 The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen ...

, style="text-align:left;", Auburn , 12 , , 12 , , 33.1 , , .391 , , .228 , , .825 , , 4.3 , , 8.1 , , 1.0 , , .3 , , 20.2

Personal life

Cooper was born in

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...

to Omar and Kindall Cooper, and the family moved to the

area when he was around the age of six. He has two sisters, Te'a and Mia, who both won state titles at McEachern, while Te'a continued on to play at

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

and Baylor before being drafted by the

Phoenix Mercury The Phoenix Mercury are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. The Mercury compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member of the Western Conference. One of eight original franchises, it wa ...

in the

2020 WNBA draft The 2020 WNBA draft was the WNBA, league's draft for the 2020 WNBA season. A draft lottery was held on September 17, 2019 and the New York Liberty were awarded the first overall pick in the draft. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States ...

. He also has a twin brother, Omar.

References

External links

Auburn Tigers bioUSA Basketball bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Sharife 2001 births Living people 21st-century African-American sportsmen 21st-century American sportsmen American expatriate basketball people in China American expatriate basketball people in France American expatriate basketball people in Greece American expatriate basketball people in Turkey American men's basketball players American twins Aris B.C. players Atlanta Hawks draft picks Atlanta Hawks players Auburn Tigers men's basketball players Basketball players from Newark, New Jersey Cleveland Charge players College Park Skyhawks players JDA Dijon Basket players Liaoning Flying Leopards players McDonald's High School All-Americans Merkezefendi Belediyesi Denizli Basket players guard