<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Hornets officials declined to say whether majority owner George Shinn interviewed Michael Cooper in Los Angeles on Sunday for the team's vacant head coaching job. "I can't comment about that," said Bob Bass, the Hornets' retiring executive vice president of basketball operations/general manager. League sources indicated Saturday that Shinn had received permission to interview Cooper, a former Los Angeles Lakers player in his fifth season coaching the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA, and would talk to him Sunday or today. Neither Cooper nor any officials from the Sparks could be reached for comment. Cooper has never been an NBA head coach, but he was an assistant with the Los Angeles Lakers from 1994-97. He has guided the Sparks to two WNBA championships and has a 105-26 record. Shinn also is expected to interview former Atlanta Hawks and Cleveland Cavaliers coach Mike Fratello this week in Los Angeles. Fratello is an analyst for TNT and the network is televising the Western Conference finals, which resume in Los Angeles on Tuesday night. </div> Article
