Entertainment

Daequan Cook teams with Shaq in Miami

By Mark Gokavi

Staff Writer

Tuesday, June 26, 2007

DAYTON — Forget a taxi, limo or Miami Heat company car. Daequan Cook had the biggest chaperone you could get in Miami.

Shaquille O'Neal heard Cook was going to be in Miami on Monday to work out for the Heat before Thursday's NBA draft. Shaq, whom Cook had met before through a mutual friend, rolled up to the airport in a shiny new Mercedes.

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"He actually came and picked me up from the airport," said Cook, the Dunbar High School graduate and former Ohio State freshman. "I got a chance to hang out with him and went over to his house for a little bit.

"Shaq wasn't really supposed to pick me up, it was supposed to be a representative from the Heat," Cook said. "But Shaq had seen me first and asked if I was here for the workout and I said yeah. So he called the representative and told him I was just going to be with him for the day."

Cook and O'Neal drove around Miami, went to an outlet mall where Shaq bought some Apple gear and then to the big man's $20 million mansion.

"We just talked about life in general, just hanging out," Cook said. "His house is a mansion. He had like eight cars, a couple motorcycles, a half-court in his house. He had his own training room. It was great. He's also a police officer, so all his cars have police lights."

Cook played with Aaron Pogue in high school and Greg Oden in AAU and college. But Cook saw what the big man looked like up close.

"He's big," Cook said. "At first I thought Greg was real big. But when you stand next to Shaq, he's even bigger. It's all muscle. He doesn't take any BS. He just wants to win."

Cook later worked out for the Heat before flying home Monday night.

Now, the 6-foot-5 shooting guard just has to wait until Thursday night to when and where he's drafted.

"This is the hardest part," Cook said. "Sitting and waiting to hear your name — just nervous. It wasn't that hard to work out."

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-6951 or mgokavi@DaytonDailyNews.com.