Back on draft night Daequan Cook had to wait his turn and wait his turn and wait his turn but my how times have changed.

Daequan Cook sat patiently by at Madison Square Garden in late June as two of his Ohio State Buckeye teammates got the chance to shake David Stern's hand before he eventually did. That was Greg Oden and Mike Conley's night in many ways but now it is Daequan Cook's time to one up them.

While Greg Oden sits out the season in Portland with microfracture surgery and Conley is out indefinitely with a tear in his right shoulder for Memphis, it's the former 21st overall pick who is healthy and playing headstrong for the Miami Heat.

"He's a very confident guy," Dwyane Wade said of the rookie guard. "You know, at Ohio State they had a very good year and had some great young talent. He's always ready to prove he should have been a little more than what people thought of him."

Now after Miami's "abysmal" 4-15 start to the season, Daequan Cook is proving he is one of the few bright spots lost between the questions regarding Wade's health and Shaq's fading age. And although the Heat are backcourt heavy with guards Jason Williams and Ricky Davis, Daequan Cook gives Riley an added dimension to go small and score when Shaq gets into foul trouble (as he did in a recent loss to Portland) or when Wade faces double-teams (as he has done all season).

"He's great," Riley said of Daequan Cook's play of late. "He's great coming off the bench and gives us a real lift and can play long minutes."

So far this season, Daequan Cook is averaging 10.7 points with 2.5 rebounds per game in about 21 minutes a night. Those aren't exactly Kevin Durant numbers but they are solid enough to make him second among all rookies in scoring. He's scored double-digits seven out of the twelve games he's appeared in and still doesn't have a start to show for it.

But if Miami continues to struggle and Riley remains experimental with a small lineup, will Daequan Cook find himself in the starting five?

"No, not right now," Riley admitted after Daequan Cook scored a career-high 20 points in a recent loss to the Portland Trail Blazers.

Despite his reserve and rookie role, Daequan Cook knows each game brings a new experience and he sounds confident enough to handle it.

"I'm getting better and better each game," Daequan Cook said. "Like I said from the start, I'm going to take advantage of the opportunities I get. When I go out there, that's what I am supposed to do is hit open shots and look to shoot the ball. That's one of the reasons coach put me out there, because I'm a great offensive threat.

"I'm just doing the things I need to do to stay on the floor."

He's going the right way about it. And anytime you can get an All-Star to recognize the same qualities in your game that you boast, then you know for certain you are doing something right.

"He surprises us a lot and hopefully he can keep surprising us," Wade said of Daequan Cook.

Miami has now lost five in a row as they prepare to take on the Los Angeles Clippers at the Staples Center on Sunday. They are buried at the bottom of the Southeast Division and rank the third-worst in the league in scoring (91.5 ppg).

But even though they are a veteran ball club that can flip the switch into postseason mode at anytime, there comes a time when you have to give a kid a chance regardless if it is a start or just major minutes and for Daequan Cook that time is right now.

Soak it up rookie.

It's been worth the wait.

 

 

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