NEW YORK -- Lenny Cooke, who did not play basketball this season because he had run out of high school eligibility, said Monday he will make himself available for the NBA draft.

The 6-foot-6 Cooke, 20, joined DeAngelo Collins of Inglewood Calif., as high school players who have declared for the draft to be held in June.

"All along I knew what I was going to do," Cooke, a native of Brooklyn, N.Y., said at a news conference with his 2-year-old son, Annhijae, in his lap. "But it was still a hard decision for me."

Los Angeles Clippers forward Elton Brand, who attended the news conference, and Stephon Marbury of the Phoenix Suns were among the NBA players Cooke consulted about the decision. Six years ago, Marbury revealed his decision to leave Georgia Tech after only one season at the same Brooklyn restaurant where Cooke made his announcement.

"A lot of teams say I'll go in the first round, it's just where," Cooke said. "Guys have told me a lot of (NBA) people are saying good things about me, so I'm glad about that."

Cooke will be represented by Immortal Sports of Santa Monica, Calif., thus ending any chance of his playing college basketball. The NCAA recently changed its eligibility rules so that a high school player could be drafted, then decide to play in college, provided he did not sign with an agent.

"You have to have a high school diploma to enter the draft," said Cooke, who is attending Central Flint (Mich.) H.S. "I know there are a lot of people out there who are pointing that out, and I want to say to them: `I'm going to get my diploma.' "

Brand, who played two years at Duke before being drafted by Chicago, said the odds were stacked against Cooke.

"Hopefully he can shine at (predraft) camps and will do well," Brand said. "There's no turning back now, and I'm rooting for him."

Cooke, who averaged 30 points and 15 rebounds while playing for LaSalle Academy in New York and Old Tappan (N.J.) High School, isn't worried about being rusty.

"I still got it -- the guys I play against know I still got it," he said. "Going in, I know I won't be a superstar right away, but I'm willing to work hard."

Last season, six high school players declared for the draft. Four -- Kwame Brown, Tyson Chandler, Eddy Curry and DeSagana Diop -- were taken among the first eight picks.

Amare Stoudemire, a 6-10 forward from Orlando, Fla., is another high school player who may declare for the draft, but he has yet to announce his intentions. He and Collins were among the 24 players selected for this year's McDonald's All-America High School Game.