Seth Curry, Quinn Cook Reunite the Duke Backcourt in Dallas

Seth Curry and Quinn Cook teamed up in the backcourt in Dallas on Monday night and it brought back all the Duke memories.

Back in 2009, Seth Curry had just finished his freshman season at Liberty University where he averaged over 20 points a game and caught the attention of people around the country. In particular, Duke University.

Curry transferred to Duke and sat out the 2009-10 season due to NCAA rules around transferring. But in the Fall of 2010, Curry took the court as a Blue Devil in his sophomore season of college basketball.

Playing behind players like Nolan Smith, Andre Dawkins and Kyrie Irving, Curry averaged only nine points a game during his first season in Durham. Then the 2011-12 season came and he had a new backcourt mate…

Austin Rivers would come in and play alongside Curry in the backcourt but another freshman point guard would come in and back up Rivers and Curry.

His name was Quinn Cook.

Cook’s freshman year at Duke mainly consisted of limited minutes off the bench as logged just over 11 minutes a game and just over four points a game. For Curry, he teamed up with Rivers in the backcourt where he would average over 13 points a game on 30 minutes a night.

It was in 2012 that Cook and Curry would become the starting backcourt for Duke.

The 2012-13 season, Curry’s senior season, would be his best year in college basketball. Curry averaged over 17 points a game on 32 minutes a night. He would also shoot his best percentage from behind the arc as he finished the season shooting 43%.

Cook would step right into the role that Rivers left behind and average over 11 points a game on 33 minutes a night.

The Cook and Curry backcourt would lead the Blue Devils to the Elite Eight where they would be beaten by the eventual champion, the Louisville Cardinals.

Now, four years later, Curry and Cook shared the same backcourt together in Dallas in what would be Cook’s first NBA game.

"“Yeah it was fun man. It was fun seeing him out there getting his first game and getting his feet wet. He can knock down shots, he can make plays,” Curry said when I asked him about playing alongside of Quinn again."

For Curry, the breakout season is continuing as he continues to prove to the Mavericks that he is one of the better up-and-coming guards in the league. For Cook, it was his first NBA game as he was just called up from the D-League to sign a 10-day contract.

But no matter the different points in their career, it felt like old times out on the court on Monday.

“He found me in a couple of spots like we did in the old days at Duke so it was fun,” Curry said.

It was a fun night all around as the Mavericks picked up another victory on the season against the Miami Heat. Cook was happy for the win, but playing with a close friend means a lot too.

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“Seth is one of my closest friends. We played two years together, backcourt mates. We won a lot of games together. That’s my guy man, that’s my guy,” Cook said.

So what about a certain Tar Heel across the locker room? How weird is it to have Harrison Barnes across the locker room after going head-to-head with him in the greatest rivalry in college basketball?

“It’s fun man…we used to battle against him at Duke. To be on the same team, it’s come full circle,” Curry said.

Cook remembers playing against Barnes his freshman year, but also remembers Barnes from times before their college days also.

“I remember Harrison, played against him twice my freshman year. He had two big games against us. He’s a great player. I’ve known him a long time since high school and camps and stuff,” Cook said.

Next: The Story of Mavs Beat Writer, Earl K. Sneed

With Cook on a simple 10-day contract, you never know how long it could last. But for the two former Blue Devils and close friends, they look to soak up every minute of it they can.

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