Te’a Cooper isn’t offended by any means. Mostly, it just causes a smile. Gives her a proud gleam in her eyes. An I did that look.
Whenever you see another hooper with one leg of her shorts pulled up, or both, Cooper would have you know she is the originator. At the very least, she is the one who popularized it.
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“On God, I did,” the Los Angeles Sparks guard said in a recent phone interview, her voice rising for emphasis. “Now everybody’s doing it, trying to act like they started it. But it’s cool, though.”
For the record, visual evidence exists of Cooper manually altering her shorts when she played for Tennessee during the 2015-16 season. Then-coach Holly Warlick wouldn’t allow her to do it in games. But in practice, she would roll the legs of her shorts up and tuck them underneath the spandex.
At South Carolina, where Cooper later transferred, she was able to order the shorts how she wanted them and got the smallest size she could. In games, she hiked them higher when she played defense, enough to reveal her thigh tat. When she moved on to Baylor in 2019, she started playing with one leg fully covered by tights. Running track in high school, she cut one of the legs off her tights to be unique. Someone told her she was like Flo-Jo, so Cooper went online and discovered the late track and field legend Florence Griffith-Joyner.
By the time Cooper made it to the 2020 WNBA bubble as a rookie for the Sparks, the high-thigh shorts were a trademark of hers.
“I’m not girly, but I literally cannot wear no basketball shorts to my knees,” Cooper explained. “Like, the Soulja Boy shorts just wasn’t for me at the time. I was like, you know what? I’m finna just tuck these in my little spandex, make them how I want them to look, and that’s just how it’s gon’ be. So I would tuck my jersey in because it was all thick on my shoulders. No, I have nice shoulders. I’m tucking my jersey in. And I have nice legs, so I’m tucking my shorts. I’m not wearing this boys’, baggy-jersey uniform. … Cut my shorts, please. Thank yooooou.”
She knows what you may be thinking. She knows what category you might be inclined to put her in, the adjectives you may use to describe her. She’s heard it pretty much all of her life.
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Truth is, looks do matter to Cooper. Such may be easy to write off as superficial but presentation is part of her genius. It’s born of her natural penchant for marketing, a je ne sais quoi she seems to have inherited from her father. She’s got one season in the books as a pro and already has an endorsement deal with Jordan Brand — perhaps no bigger vouching for her star potential. She also has deals with Mielle Organics, Thorne Health and ProClass, an online basketball training program featuring NBA stars Chris Paul, Damian Lillard and DeMar DeRozan and WNBA vet Aerial Powers.
Cooper’s vibrant personality, which shapeshifts between silly and serious, is a magnet for attention and favor. She is a walking brand. And part of Cooper hopes people take such as a weakness, make the assumption she’s more about business than ball, or that she’s being paraded out front undeservingly. Because she likes surprising people. She likes the moment when doubters suddenly learn of her toughness, feel the impact of her work ethic, have to respect her for her skill.
“For Coop,” Sparks GM and coach Derek Fisher said, “I really do believe she’s equipped for it because of her experiences, even in her very short and young life. To go from Tennessee to South Carolina to Baylor, and find the success that she did at the collegiate level under all of those changing and evolving circumstances. That was something that, for me, always played in the back of my mind, that she’s very resilient and tough-minded. Because a lot of players can’t do that. They can’t go from place to place, for whatever the reasons are, and still find a level of consistency in their performance. … That although people may second guess or question you — for whatever reasons, that could be valid in some way — but you find a way to persevere and be the last one standing after all of the dust settles. I just think she has a lot of that in her.”
It’s this dichotomy that gives Cooper such unique star potential. The hooper and the influencer. The grinder and the glamorous. She could become a major presence in a league consumed with growing.
Her gravitational pull is already apparent, as evidenced by the 1.3 million followers she has on Instagram, Twitter and TikTok combined. She’s only played 20 games, only has three starts, and already she’s as well known as most in the league. And the connections bolster her access and reach: now being affiliated with Jordan; her brother, Auburn guard Sharife Cooper, is headed to the NBA.
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And yet, she is a baller, skilled and athletic, grittier than the baby hair might suggest.
The 2020 collective bargaining agreement between the league and the players had a player-first theme to it. The undergirding message was how the league, which has been trying to level up its market share in the sports landscape, was ready to lean on its players. By investing in them, by promoting them, by empowering them. The women of the league are the best ambassadors.
“The amount of following young players like Te’a are bringing with them into the league is a new wave of sports being used as a platform we haven’t seen before,” said Nneka Ogwumike, who is president of the WNBPA’s executive committee and was part of forming the new CBA. “It’s amazing, really. To have players who regard themselves as a business and brand will only add to the marketing value women have in sports, which we will all see lead to more and more investments.”
If Cooper’s production keeps rising to match her swag, the combination could explode.
The potential was obvious in her rookie season the way she immediately impacted the championship-hopeful Sparks. This season will require another level as franchise anchor Candace Parker is now in Chicago and starting point guard Chelsea Gray is now in Las Vegas.
“I’m nowhere near done yet,” Cooper said. “I feel like this is just the beginning. It’s going very well. I’m very appreciative. But this is, again, just the beginning.”
Back in December, Cooper was the host of a Jr. Sparks Virtual Clinic, attended by young hoopers from across the nation. At the end was a Q&A. The youth submitted questions via Zoom’s chat. But a special group got to come off mute and actually talk to Cooper.
She lit up. Her eyes widened. A lip-glossed smile spread across her face. She held the stunned expression, amping up the cheeriness, as she searched through the squares for who was talking. She could hear their harmonious “Hiiiiii” followed by nervous giggles. But she couldn’t see them. She had to see them, give them a moment with her.
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It was a girls basketball team that joined the clinic with Cooper. From Sweden.
“Wow, that’s amazing,” Cooper yelled back, lacquering on her raspy Georgia accent. “I appreciate y’all so much.”
“It’s so crazy to me,” she later explained, “because I just found out I had a lot of fans in Nigeria and Africa and stuff. So to know I have some in Sweden is like, ‘Where are y’all finding me at? How y’all know about me?’ It’s amazing to have love and support from places I never even been.”
She was impressed. Cooper has an appreciation for long journeys since she’s had one herself.
It started so smoothly, too. Her family moved from New Jersey to a middle-class Atlanta suburb, Powder Springs, Ga., when she was young. Cooper started playing hoop in the third grade. She got her first letter from UCLA in the fifth grade. In the eighth grade, she committed to the University of North Carolina — “because they had a Jordan deal,” she said excitedly, “which is crazy, right?” — and her older sister, Mia, was committed to South Carolina. Cooper eventually switched her commitment to Tennessee as a junior at McEachern High School.
As a senior on an injury-depleted team, Cooper ascended. She earned a nod for 2015 McDonald’s All-American, status as the No. 1 point guard in the country and a spot in the Jordan Brand’s first women’s All-Star Game in Brooklyn. She finished runner-up to her friend, Asia Durr, for Miss Georgia Basketball.
Then it was off to Tennessee, where she teamed up with Diamond DeShields, who was two years older and played high school ball in a crosstown Atlanta suburb at Norcross High. Cooper and DeShields became even better friends.
Cooper started 15 of her 36 games as a freshman. She averaged 8.6 points and 2.1 assists. Tennessee reached the Elite Eight in 2016. But her Volunteer experience ended rather tumultuously.
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Over the summer, while at home, she tore her left ACL. She didn’t know that’s what it was at first. Her knee was swollen but it didn’t feel that severe. Ultrasound not only revealed a torn ACL but also a blood clot.
Cooper redshirted her sophomore year, the 2016-17 season. She didn’t mind the rehab so much. What’s hidden beneath her extravagant veneer is a woman who appreciates process, the gradual and rigid steps along the way. She said she likes to work out until it hurts, until she can’t even sleep comfortably, because anything less is a waste of time. The ACL rehab gave her that constant feeling of progress: from not being able to walk, to being able to exercise, to watching her quadriceps muscles form, to feeling her hamstrings getting stronger, to noticing her calves flexing, to being back where she was pre-injury. Cooper does have a spirit about her that’s blue-collar, even if it’s Gucci.
A college nomad, Cooper started at Tennessee, then left after one season to play for Dawn Staley at South Carolina before finishing up at Baylor. (Jim Dedmon / USA Today)Some two months after the season ended, she decided to transfer to South Carolina, where her big sister once committed and where legendary point guard Dawn Staley had just won the 2017 title. The decision came with controversy as reportedly a fight between Cooper and then-teammate Jaime Nared was a factor in her decision to leave Tennessee.
Transferring requires sitting out a year, but South Carolina petitioned for a waiver since Cooper had already missed a year rehabbing from injury. Her petition was denied.
“That one hurt,” Cooper said. “I couldn’t play because of my ACL, so at least there was a reason. When my waiver got denied after I transferred, it was like, ‘What is your point? What is your reason? Like, come on. Are you serious?’ They really made me sit out for two years.”
The extra year out gave her time to unpack what she’d been through and who she was — even the mistakes she’d made. The maturation was necessary. After playing hard to get, she opened up to the sports psychologist at South Carolina and found the sessions to be helpful as she went through the mental challenge of sitting out a second consecutive season.
On Nov. 11, 2018, she finally returned to the court, 959 days after her last college basketball game (Tennessee’s loss to Syracuse in the regional final her freshman year). She went on to lead the Gamecocks in scoring in 2018-19 as a junior (11.9 points per game). But she shared a backcourt with fellow junior Tyasha Harris. Staley had Harris at the point and Cooper at shooting guard. That wasn’t going to change under Staley. So Cooper, who finished her undergrad degree at South Carolina, transferred to Baylor. She enrolled in graduate school in pursuit of a master’s degree in divinity and took the opportunity to play one year at the point.
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She averaged 13.6 points in 30.1 minutes at Baylor. She also had two major improvements over her production at South Carolina. She raised her 3-point percentage to 41.5 percent, up from 28.9 percent as a junior. She also improved her assist-to-turnover ratio. At South Carolina: 66 assists, 68 turnovers. At Baylor: 137 assists, 71 turnovers. She also led Baylor in steals.
The Bears finished the season 28-2 and ranked No. 2 in the nation. Kim Mulkey’s squad was in the mix for a national title. But the pandemic shut down college basketball. Her college basketball career was over.
Six years after committing to Tennessee, five years after graduating high school, and after three college basketball seasons on three teams, Cooper was drafted into the WNBA by the Phoenix Mercury in April 2020. Her storybook journey had reached a pinnacle. From childhood prodigy to the 18th pick in the 2020 draft (No. 6 in the second round). She finally made it.
A month later, she was cut by the Mercury.
Because of the pandemic, WNBA training camps were essentially canceled and teams had to cut their rosters down to 12 by May 26. Normally, camp is 15 players deep. But revenue was a concern in the league’s attempt to play a season, and salaries started being paid on June 1. So the decision was made to finalize WNBA rosters without a camp. The Mercury drafted Cooper so she could compete for a backup point guard role. But since Phoenix acquired All-Star point guard Skylar Diggins-Smith two months before the draft, they cut the cord on their second-round pick.
That was found money for the Sparks, whose newly acquired point guard Kristi Toliver opted out of the 2020 season.
“We were surprised that she had dropped to 18,” Fisher said. “She wasn’t even part of our planning. But, I mean, she would have gotten drafted at 20 by us had she made it to 20. So the reality that she was available in that type of situation, it was a no-brainer for us.”
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And Cooper on one of the league’s most popular WNBA teams? Also a no-brainer.
Guess who her first game was against? Phoenix.
Cooper was part of a Sparks second unit that clicked from the jump. She was the pressuring pace-setter, flanked by Brittney Sykes and Seimone Augustus, who revved up the energy. In her first pro game, Cooper had 10 points on 4-for-7 shooting off the bench, zipping around the court making stuff happen. A three. Two steals. Three fouls. Two assists. It was an eventful debut off the bench in a Sparks blowout win.
The duality of Cooper was evident immediately. She commanded eyes. Yes, with her overt style, but also with her frenetic impact — pesky defense, the quickness in her drives, the energy.
“Coop has great instincts on both ends of the floor,” Sparks guard Sydney Wiese said. “She plays with speed, confidence, and has savviness in her decision-making. All of those things come naturally to her and allowed her to step in right away without missing a beat.”
Finding a WNBA home in Los Angeles, Cooper thrived in primarily a bench role in 2020. She’s in line for a bigger job this year on a changing Sparks team. (Ned Dishman / NBAE via Getty Images)It makes sense Fisher would have a connection with Cooper.
He launched an 18-year NBA career out of Arkansas-Little Rock on hustle and energy, growing into a starting point guard and champion. Better believe he could spot the underlooked qualities in Cooper. He remembers coming off the bench as a rookie, going all out trying to leave an impression.
“There were times in this first year where she realized how hard that is,” Fisher said through a chuckle. “There were times in the game where, after like four minutes, she was done. Because it is really difficult to push the ball as hard as she does, drive to the basket, run pick-and-roll, come off screens, drop off the pocket pass to somebody else to finish, now pick up the ball full court, fight through pick-and-rolls, chase a shooter off staggers, get the rebound, push it up again. You can’t do that all out for a very long time. So I think she could actually be even better and more efficient in some ways this year compared to last year.
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“But from Day One,” Fisher added, “she showed confidence and physical and mental toughness that I just think is important to be successful out there. And I think that’s why she was able to handle her rookie year and in a strong way.”
All it did was raise the stakes. The Sparks get Toliver this season, and also signed All-Star point guard Erica Wheeler. But another level from Cooper will be necessary.
For starters, she can shoot it better from 3. In a league taking more and more from deep, her 34.4 percent is respectable. But it ranked 29th among guards with at least 30 attempts. Wiese shot a team-high 47.2 percent from 3 for the Sparks, who also lost Riquna Williams, the team’s sharpshooter off the bench who made 42.2 percent of her team-high 102 3-point attempts.
The shuffling of the Sparks roster — losing three of their top five players in total minutes — creates an opportunity for an expanded role for Cooper. She signed a one-year deal to remain with the Sparks. But Fisher doesn’t want it to extend too far beyond what it was last year, but for her to master this role and see where it grows. Build on the defensive acumen she learned from assistant coach Latricia Trammell’s tutelage. Use some of her skillful ball-handling and quickness to attack the rim even more.
And, yes, there is part of Fisher who is old school enough to prefer a background role for young players coming off the bench. He was part of the reserve unit with young Kobe Bryant, backing up Nick Van Exel, on a team led by Shaquille O’Neal. Fame was earned through accolades. Celebrity was a hierarchy.
“But that’s me personally,” Fisher said. “I think that Te’a has the balance of who she is as a person and as a woman and as a teammate, that all of us quickly learned that her platform, her social media presence and the way she does her branding, it doesn’t really seep into the way she interacts with us. She doesn’t carry herself differently because of that. And that’s what, for me, gives me a sense of confidence that she can do a little bit of both.”
Cooper is perhaps an example of why the baton of pushing the W was due to be passed to the players. She has been primed for attention, a master at securing it. She was 13 years old doing shows about her life on YouTube. She was in high school when MTV called to feature her on an episode of “True Life” about her college recruitment. Her pops made sure she and her brothers were fly, laced with the best drip.
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So of course she is going to lure camera lenses with her dancing and lipsynching. Of course she is modeling in fashion shows on TikTok and featured on billboards in L.A. with Russell Westbrook. Of course she’s going to get decked out and stunt on Instagram. Of course she’s going to post videos doing whatever the latest challenge is on social media with her inner circle. She’s got to be true to herself.
“I think Te’a has a personality that shines,” Ogwumike said. “She is relatable, fun, and in tune with the young generation. Let’s also not forget: She can hoop.”
Undoubtedly, a contingent somewhere would want the attention to go to the stars of the league, those who’ve put in years of work and racked up the accolades. But Cooper has an unwritten promise to whatever eyes she draws: They will see a full picture.
The flash and the focus. The glitz and the grit.
(Top photo: Ned Dishman / NBAE via Getty Images)
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