Cooks caps amazing nine months with NBL MVP award

The past nine months have been nothing short of amazing for Sydney Kings forward Xavier Cooks.

From guiding the Kings' to their fourth NBL championship and subsequently being crowned NBL22 Finals MVP to taking out the New Zealand National Basketball League MVP in the off-season, the 2022-23 campaign with Sydney had all the makings to be his best to date.

STAY UP TO DATE WITH THE KINGS' NBL23 FINALS INFORMATION HERE

The 27-year-old exceeded those lofty expectations by guiding the Hoops Capital club to the regular season championship before taking out the competition's most prestigious award, the Andrew Gaze MVP Award on Tuesday night.

"It's pretty crazy [winning the MVP] - I didn't think it was going to happen," Cooks said at the awards dinner in Melbourne.

"I've had a good year but credit to [Mitch] Creeky and Bryce [Cotton] - they've had unbelievable years and this could have gone either way.

"I've been in this league for four years now and been a fan of it since my childhood - so to see my name up there with the likes of Andrew Gaze, Andrew Bogut and Bryce Cotton means a lot to me."

Congratulations to Xavier Cooks and Derrick Walton Jr for being named in the All-NBL First Team ?#TheGazeys pic.twitter.com/imycD1QKSa

— Sydney Kings (@SydneyKings) February 7, 2023

During his awards speech, the Australian Boomer, who was also named in the 2022-23 All-NBL First Team alongside fellow King Derrick Walton Jr, credited the best period of his career to many people in his inner circle.

"I can't thank those guys [the Kings organisation] - from the ownership to the front office and our fans, every single person has made me feel like family and I'm extremely grateful for them all," said the Winthrop Eagles alum, who also praised the NBL for continuing to make the league stronger each and every year.

"My teammates and coaches - thanks for pushing me each and every day to get better.

"Finally, my family, in order for me to be here, you've all made sacrifices, giving up a lot of time and effort - so I can't thank you all enough."

Tickets to game one of the Kings' semi-final series on Wednesday, February 15 at Qudos Bank Arena are officially on sale here.