To say he’s a kid from Amarillo with a dream of playing professional basketball, to now saying he’s played for two NBA G League teams and traveled to six different countries to pursue his passion is quite extraordinary.
“I’m extremely proud of the career I’ve had so far,” Cobbins said. “To be a kid from Amarillo and being in school reading history books and now actually getting to see those places I read about and play there is awesome. My career is amazing. I can’t compare it to anyone else because this is tailor made for me.”
Cobbins established his name across Amarillo and the Texas Panhandle as one of the best to play at Palo Duro High School. The 2010 Palo Duro graduate was a mismatch with his impressive 6-foot-8 frame and his ability to run the floor with extreme quickness. Cobbins racked up every accolade a high school player could accomplish and was highly recruited at the Division I level, accepting a basketball scholarship to Oklahoma State.
With the Cowboys, Cobbins raised his game to new heights as a three-year starter for OSU, playing in 105 games and establishing his reputation as a highly touted defender, shot blocker and rebounder.
After Cobbins graduated from OSU with a degree in education in 2014, he was now ready to get his feet wet in pro basketball.
Cobbins went undrafted in the 2015 NBA draft, however, did join the Summer League squad for the Oklahoma City Thunder.
From there, the immaculate journey truly began for Cobbins.
Over the past eight years, Cobbins has traveled the world. Now 30-years-old, Cobbins has played for not only the Thunder Summer and G League teams, but also the Washington Wizards. He’s also found his way overseas with stops in Germany, Croatia, Greece, Israel and Italy.
“Basketball is such a passion,” Cobbins said. “I still wake up every day and can’t wait to hoop. I still have all the fire and desire even though you do have moments when you question things after an injury or something like that. But it’s about being mentally strong, being strong in your faith and having a great support group. I have a tremendous support group around me. I check in with them often and they always lift me up.”
“Israel was amazing,” Cobbins said. I was treated great like most of the American guys were, I lived near the beach, and it was always warm so I could wear shorts all the time. But we were near a warzone, so it got a little hectic. We’d be playing or walking out of the arena and missiles would start falling. Some missiles were near some players apartments, so it was pretty intense, but for the most part I liked it there.”
Cobbins has now found stability in Italy playing for Pallacanestro Germani Brescia of the Italian Lega Basket Series A, recently completing his second year for the club. This past season, Cobbins was a standout putting up 8.1 points a game while pulling down 4.8 rebounds. He’s even learned the language, adores the food, and keeps an apartment full-time.
“Italy is my home now,” Cobbins said. “I’ve even made some great connections. Italy is like living in a painting and the league I play in is really great and competitive. We have some Euro League teams and play in the Euro Cup so we travel around quite a bit. And I can’t say enough about the pasta. My goodness. It’s hard to come home and have anything Italian. It’s the best over there.”
Cobbins adds he’s even become a different type player than anyone remembers him from his high school or college days.
“I’m a lot more versatile player now,” Cobbins said. “I handle the ball a lot more and the team even refers to me as a point guard. Even though I’m the big, when I get the ball, I’m directing traffic and making passes or looking for options some people don’t see. The game has slowed down for me. I now do a lot more back door cuts, or I’m shooting from the perimeter, and I still have my defensive presence.”
“I want young kids to know the real world and what’s to come and what I’ve learned,” Cobbins said. “I’m currently working on getting involved in communities in getting them more awareness of how to manage your money, buying homes, taxes, mental awareness to make sure that you’re good. I want them to be prepared and have the knowledge for what’s coming in the real world.”
He also never forgets where he comes from. Cobbins is back in Amarillo for the summer spending time with family and friends and is thankful that Palo Duro gave him his start to where he is today.
“Palo Duro means everything to me,” Cobbins said. “These are my roots, and this is where the hard work was established. I really pushed myself and had a coach like Jeff Evans that demanded the upmost from you. We had some unbelievable pickup games in the Palo Duro Gym no one really knows about. We had guys come back and they were some great games. Amarillo and Palo Duro is still special to me and the jump start to me.”
As for getting back to the NBA? That’s always a destination for Cobbins but despite what the future holds, not being ever playing in the league full-time will never put a damper on his accomplishments.
“My personal goal is to grace the NBA but there’s a lot of ways to get to it whether it’s a player standpoint or a coaching route,” Cobbins said. “But I’m not disappointed at all in my career because I’ve had a great career and I’ve made a lot of connections.”