Duke Basketball: Quinn Cook Lands Spot On Cousy Watch List

Mar 24, 2013; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Duke Blue Devils guard Quinn Cook (2) waves his arms during the first half against the Creighton Bluejays during the third round of the NCAA basketball tournament at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame committee released the official watch list for the 2014 Bob Cousy Collegiate Point Guard of Year Award and Duke PG Quinn Cook found himself amongst the large group.

The Cousy Award has been around since the 2003-04 season, and Cook has the chance to be the first Duke player to ever win it. What does it take to win this award?

"“The Bob Cousy Award promotes the values of leadership, determination, and teamwork, all skills needed not only on the hardwood but also in life,” said Ken Kaufman, Chair of the Bob Cousy Award and former president of the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC). “Mr. Cousy exemplified all of these traits, and continues to be an inspiration to basketball players on and off the court.”"

Cook had a breakout year during his sophomore season, seeing an increase in nearly every statistical category. His impressive, season-long improvement landed him a spot on the Third-Team All-ACC squad, and he figures to improve on that this year. His biggest task this season will consist of him managing to find a way to distribute the ball to Duke’s numerous weapons, a problem I’m sure he is looking forward to. We haven’t seen much of third-year Cook yet, but he turned in a strong performance in the instrasquad scrimmage; the junior tallied 15 points on 5-11 (2-4 3pt) shooting to go along with his two assists and two steals.

In February, we’ll see the list dwindle down to 20, then down to five by early March. Cook has plenty of time to show he belongs in the conversation for best point guard in the country.

The complete list (via GoDuke.com):

2014 Bob Cousy Award Watch List
Trevor Releford, Alabama
TJ McConnell, Arizona
Jahii Carson, Arizona State
Derrick Marks, Boise State
Walt Lemon, Jr., Bradley
Justin Cobbs, California
Kyle Anderson, UCLA
Billy Baron, Canisus
Spencer Dinwiddie, Colorado
Shabazz Napier, Connecticut
Quinn Cook, Duke
Brett Comer, Florida Gulf Coast
Kasey Hill, Florida
Devon Bookert, Florida State
Markel Starks, Georgetown
Kevin Pangos, Gonzaga
Siyani Chambers, Harvard
Brandyn Curry, Harvard
Yogi Ferrell, Indiana
Jake Odum, Indiana State
DeAndre Kane, Iowa State
Andrew Harrison, Kentucky
Elfrid Payton, Lafayette
Jason Brickman, Long Island-Brooklyn
Anthony Ireland, Loyola Marymount
Chris Jones, Louisville
Chaz Williams, Massachusetts
Michael Dixon, Memphis
Joe Jackson, Memphis
Keith Appling, Michigan State
Jordan Clarkson, Missouri
Kendall Williams, New Mexico
Marcus Paige, North Carolina
Eric Atkins, Notre Dame
Aaron Craft, Ohio State
Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State
Dominic Artis, Oregon
Tim Frazier, Penn State
Kris Dunn, Providence
Tyler Ennis, Syracuse
Preston Medlin, Utah State
Ryan Arcidiacono, Villanova
Nigel Williams-Goss, Washington
Semaj Christon, Xavier
Kendrick Perry, Youngstown State

After Duke opens the season against Davidson November 8th, they travel to Chicago for the State Farm Champions Classic.