Official: ARIS Midea BC signs Sharife Cooper

ARIS Midea BC is pleased to announce the signing of Sharife Cooper for the remainder of the 2024-25 season.

Sharife Cooper was born on 11 June 2001, is 6’5″ and plays the point guard position.

The new ARI Midea athlete attended McEachern High School during his high school years. After two very good seasons, he finished third in 2018-19 with 27.2 points, 5.6 rebounds, 8.1 assists and 4.3 steals, leading his team to the title and winning several awards, including the coveted USA Today All-USA High School Player of the Year. In 2021, the team retired his No. 2 jersey and named him the best player in high school history.

In 2020, he committed to Auburn University. He averaged 20.2 points, 4.3 rebounds and 8.1 assists, finishing in the top five in the Southeastern Conference.

After just one year in the NCAA, Cooper declared himself eligible for the 2021 draft. He was selected by the Atlanta Hawks with the 48th overall pick. He played in 13 games for the NBA team, spending most of the season with G-League affiliate College Park Skyhawks, where he averaged 17.1 points, 4.0 rebounds and 6.9 assists.

The 23-year-old guard spent the next two years (2022-24) with the Cleveland Cavaliers, playing for their affiliate team, the Cleveland Charge. In his first year, he averaged 21.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 6.3 assists, earning him a spot in the league’s top five, while in his second year he averaged 19.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, 7.6 assists and 1.6 steals.

In the 2023-24 season, he played for Liaoning Dinosaurs in the Chinese League, averaging 11.6 points, 2.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists, and until recently he played for Merkezefendi Belediyesi in Turkey, averaging 15.8 points, 4.3 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game.