Cynthia Cooper-Dyke relishes memories of Houston’s golden basketball era

It is not easy to become an icon in the city of Houston, especially in the sports world. The fans are very strict on whom they call a Houston sports legend, and especially in basketball.

That elite moniker is reserved for individuals such as former Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon, who led his team to two NBA championships in 1994 and 1995. An example from a different sport is Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, who has helped bring two recent World Series titles to the fourth largest city in North America.

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Yet, another name falls right in line with those icons. It’s a woman who is largely responsible for the four WNBA championship banners that still reside inside the Toyota Center, home of the Rockets.

In this case, she is so legendary throughout Houston that people rarely call her by her full name. They simply yell out, “Coop!”

Long before former Houston Comets player Cynthia Cooper-Dyke was winning WNBA titles and multiple Finals MVPs, she perfected her skills at the University of Southern California in rigorous practices versus players such as 1995 Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame inductee Cheryl Miller, along with Pam and Paula McGee.

“I didn’t start at USC, I came off of the bench, so I had to practice against Cheryl Miller every single day,” Cooper-Dyke said via Zoom. “Those practices were tough. To try to get to the rim against Cheryl and the McGee twins, I had to step my game up a little bit.”

Her contributions helped USC win two NCAA championships. Those playing days, along with helping lead Locke High School in Los Angeles to their first and only state championship, were recognized by the Southern California Basketball Hall of Fame in 2020 as they enshrined Cooper-Dyke into their inaugural 2020 class of inductees.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, individuals could not attend in person, so the ceremony was postponed. This month, the inductees were finally able to have an official induction ceremony.

“I am incredibly honored,” Cooper-Dyke said about being recognized for her on- and off-court accomplishments. “There is a lot of talent that comes out of California. That puts me in good company. I grew up in Los Angeles, and to have success with the amount of talent that comes out of that city and really state, I feel very fortunate. To be recognized for my accomplishments is just an amazing honor.”

After spending a decade playing professional basketball overseas, Cooper-Dyke finally got to showcase her talent with the Comets in the newly formed WNBA in 1997. This challenge would be more difficult for her than the practices at USC against Miller, since she was turning 34 in her rookie season. Making matters more challenging was that her star teammate, Sheryl Swoopes, would miss a significant amount of time due to her pregnancy.

If you have been around “Coop” for any time, you know that obstacles never deter her from getting the job done. That’s exactly she did in being named league MVP while leading the Comets to the inaugural WNBA championship in 1997 while winning Finals MVP.

Three more titles over the next three years helped set a foundation for the WNBA and solidified her place amongst basketball royalty, as she became the first WNBA player to be enshrined into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2010. It also made for a golden era in Houston basketball, since those four championships by the now-defunct Comets came shortly after the Rockets’ two titles.

“I knew when I started playing in the WNBA, the work I put in, the effort we put in, the games we won, the championships we won, would help lay the foundation for a stronger WNBA,” Cooper-Dyke said. “Hopefully, I left a legacy of hard work, winning championships, not settling, but continuing to grow and get better every single year. I love the state of the WNBA now, because you see talent all over the place.”

After her playing career, Cooper-Dyke became a head coach and helped rebuild the women’s basketball programs at Prairie View A&M and Texas Southern, two historically black colleges in Texas.

Giving back to the sport she loves so much did not stop after her coaching days ended. Within a few weeks, Cooper-Dyke will be reunited with her former teammate, Sheryl Swoopes, when they will host the “Legends Tournament” in June for girls between the ages of 9 through 17, followed by a basketball camp in Houston.