Xavier Cooks is in no rush to leave the Sydney Kings even if his latest dunk helps fuel international interest for an overseas contract.
A pre-season favourite for the NBL's MVP award, Cooks threw down an early contender for dunk of the year when he soared above Isaac Humphries for a one-handed jam against Melbourne United over the weekend.
Cooks opened his phone after the 91-71 win to some 270 notifications, including messages from NBA champion and former Kings teammate Ian Clark and Philadelphia 76ers wing Matisse Thybulle.
Cooks has been on the NBA radar previously, having played Summer League with the Golden State Warriors and Phoenix Suns, and reportedly attracted the interest of more than one franchise ahead of the upcoming season.
An NBA clause in Cooks' contract allows him to move to the US if made an offer.
But while Cooks' dream is to eventually follow Australian bigs Jock Landale and Jack White from the NBL to the US, he is content to remain put for the time being.
"I don't know what (the dunk) does other than make my phone annoy me," he said.
"It might hopefully generate some buzz.
"I'm not looking to leave the Sydney Kings for anything besides the NBA and even then, I love it here (in Sydney). This is my focus right now."
Cooks leans on his teammates to stay grounded as the hype train gathers steam.
"They're really humbling, they're going to bag me out all day," he said with a laugh.
"I love it, I do the same thing back to them."
Cooks currently leads the NBL for average points per game and has been instrumental in keeping the Kings undefeated through three outings.
Shooting, especially from the free-throw line, remains a point of focus for the 27-year-old as the Kings work to find their chemistry following significant roster changes in the off-season.
"(The start of the season) hasn't really gone to plan but we've won three games so we're happy about that," Cooks said.
"We're still learning to play together. We've had a lot of turnovers.
"We're not perfect but you wouldn't expect for us to be perfect right now."
