Q&A with Cynthia Cooper

Making a comeback reminiscent of another basketball icon, the two-time MVP of the WNBA returns to the court for the Houston Comets at age 40

Cynthia Cooper Carlos Antonio Rios/The Houston Chronicle/AP

SI: How much more does the body hurt at age 40 than at 20?

Cooper: Right now it doesn't hurt. But it hurts getting into shape. I don't feel any worse today than I did at 35 or 33, but it was much harder for me to get into shape at age 40 than it was at 33.

SI: Last year you said you couldn't imagine yourself coming back. What changed?

Cooper: I played some pickup ball in the Virgin Islands when I was doing a basketball camp last July, and it sparked something. It got the fire going again.

SI: You retired at the top of your game in 2000, after leading the Comets to a fourth consecutive title. Do you worry about tarnishing your legacy?

Cooper: No. I worry about being the type of player I was when I left.

SI: Can you be that player again?

Cooper: When I get back to 100 percent with my conditioning, I think I'll be exactly where I was when I left.

SI: Will you take this comeback on a year-by-year basis?

Cooper: Yes. At the end of every season and thereafter I'll evaluate my situation.

SI: When will we see an 18-year-old girl follow the LeBron James route and jump straight from high school to the WNBA?

Cooper: Maybe in the next five years.

SI: Would you have any interest in playing for the 2004 U.S. Olympic team if asked?

Cooper: If I was asked I would definitely play, but I don't really have any ambition to compete in the Olympics again. I would like to maybe help out on the coaching staff.

SI: Will your twins [son Brian Jr. and daughter Cyan, 10 months] go on the road with you?

Cooper: I would never travel differently than the team, so I would definitely have to bring someone like a nanny with me so they could watch the babies.

SI: You and your husband opted to use a surrogate to have your children. How much did your being an athlete factor into that decision?

Cooper: It didn't factor into the decision at all. That's what we decided to do and it's what worked out best for us. Everything went wonderfully.

SI: Your husband (Brian Dyke) is a sports agent who represents Kenyon Martin and Dion Glover, among others. Did you ever imagine you'd marry an agent?

Cooper: No way. No way. But my husband is special. Not just because I'm biased. I see him work with his players and I see how he cares about them. I remember DerMarr Johnson was in a car accident and we were on a plane that very morning to make sure he was OK. Brian deals with his players on a different level than most agents do. They're not just objects or money-making machines for him. He really cares for them.

SI: The parallels between you and Michael Jordan are obvious. Have you talked to Michael about your comeback?

Cooper: I haven't spoken to Michael, but I did follow his comeback.

SI: Have you ever played with your fellow Houston hoops star Yao Ming?

Cooper: No, but he did hold my daughter. In his arms she seemed even smaller than she actually was.

SI: You adopted your nephew and provide for six other young relatives. Plus, you have the twins. Did you always have that motherly instinct?

Cooper: I didn't really know I had a motherly instinct, but I think I got it from my mom. She always tried to help people and be there for her family and help them get into a better situation than the one they grew up in. That's kind of my goal with my nieces and nephews, to give them a better future.

SI: Before resigning you went 19-23 as the coach of the Phoenix Mercury. Will you return to coaching?

Cooper: I definitely want to go back, but I think I want to coach on a collegiate level.

SI: How hard will it be for you not to do most of the talking in the huddle this season?

Cooper: That's not going to be a problem. I've been a player much longer than I've been a coach. It's no problem listening and doing exactly what the coach asks of me.

SI: Will the WNBA survive in the long term?

Cooper: I hope so and I foresee the league doing what's necessary to survive. Sometimes that means allowing teams to fold. Sometimes that means relocating teams.

SI: Would you have played for a team besides the Comets?

Cooper: I would have if I was forced to, but I really didn't want to.

SI: Have you set any kind of personal goals for this season?

Cooper: My No. 1 goal is to help my team win. My goal is to at some point this season -- hopefully sooner than later -- to be at 100 percent so I can help my team win.

--Richard Deitsch

Issue date: June 2, 2003

 

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