For Jack Cooley and Ryukyu, their inaugural East Asia Super League season was a rollercoaster. They secured dominant wins over league powerhouses but also suffered unexpected losses to lesser teams. Despite the highs and lows, the Golden Kings finished with a disappointing 3-3 record—falling short of the expectations placed on the reigning B.LEAGUE champions heading into EASL’s first home-and-away season.

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To make matters worse, just months after their shocking group-stage exit, Ryukyu endured another heartbreak, losing to Western District rivals Hiroshima Dragonflies in the B.LEAGUE Finals. The three-game series loss denied them the chance to become back-to-back champions.

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How does a team bounce back from losing two major titles in less than 10 weeks?

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Ryukyu may have found the perfect answer.

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This season, the Golden Kings boast one of the best domestic records in the B.LEAGUE and are on track for a top seed in the playoffs. And their second EASL campaign? An almost-perfect 5-1 record, earning them the No. 1 seed in Group B.

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In just over a week, Ryukyu could very well be crowned the champions of Asian basketball. At the heart of it all will likely be Cooley — the team’s 6-foot-9 bruiser, ready to lead the celebration.

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One of the most expressive players you’ll find on any court, Cooley has been pivotal to Ryukyu’s EASL success this season. Through five games, he’s averaging 18.8 points and 13.6 rebounds, with five of those rebounds coming on the offensive end. As a frontcourt player, he boasts an impressive 88.9% from the free-throw line and has managed to stay out of foul trouble, reaching four personal fouls only once during the regular season.

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Arguably the heartbeat of the Golden Kings, Cooley has been Ryukyu’s import player of choice since the 2019-20 season. In Asian basketball, a franchise’s loyalty to a foreign player isn’t always guaranteed. There are always faster, bigger, taller options. Yet, over the six seasons that the former Notre Dame standout has been with Ryukyu, the Golden Kings have become one of the best teams on the continent — and Cooley has been the picture of consistency throughout.

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That consistency and trust between Cooley and Ryukyu has been especially evident in EASL play this season. Watch any Golden Kings game, and it’s clear: when Ryukyu finds itself in trouble, they often turn to Cooley for a quick bucket to get back on track. Sometimes it’s a floater deep in the paint, other times a vicious dunk. And when needed, he cleans up misses on the offensive glass and powers in a multitude of finishes to energize the team.

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The examples are plentiful. There’s the 24-point, 19-rebound performance to defeat league newcomers, the Macau Black Bears, on Oct. 30. Then there’s his season-high 29-point, 18-rebound showing to take down the reigning KBL champions, the Busan KCC Egis, on Dec. 4. These two are just part of Cooley’s impressive streak of four consecutive double-doubles during the 2024-25 campaign.

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Cooley and company cruised through the group stage, their only defeat being a surprising blowout loss on the road to New Taipei. But as they head into EASL Final Four 2025, Ryukyu enters as the No. 1 seed in Group B, with a semifinal showdown against the P. LEAGUE+’s Taoyuan Pauian Pilots — a team with a high-octane scoring backcourt and physical forwards capable of matching Cooley’s strength.

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But matching Cooley’s power is one thing. Beating him is another — something no team has figured out during the regular season.

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And as for the extra fuel Cooley has drawn from Ryukyu’s disappointments last season? That probably won’t help Taoyuan.

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Don’t miss one of the league’s premier centers in action against Chinese Taipei’s Pilots on March 7 at 21:10 CST in Studio City Macau.

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Click HERE to secure your tickets!