The Run Ends

Hello Everyone,

I come today to share with you that we have lost, and are out of the cup. It was a crazy game, but we did end up playing another tough team. It was Ramata Hasharon, they have Jia Perkins of the Chicago Sky, Ebony Hoffman Of the Indiana Fever, and Erin Phillips who played for Connecticut Suns. Their team is a really good team!. It was a close game the entire way. They led the entire game but we kept it close -- no more than six the entire time. We did have a great yet scary surprise though. Our teammate Charde Houston decided to play on her hurt leg right before the game. I was so shocked and scared, I was not sure what to say to her or anything. I saw that she had made up her mind to play, so I just said a prayer with her and left it in God's hand to protect her. She came out and played really well for us. She gave us all that she had and we couldn't have asked for anything else. I am happy that she is on my team. Anyway the overall game was a sloppy one for both teams. It came down to 6.2 secs. We were coming out of a time out and the other team had set up a defense to trap me. I broke the trap and went a completely different way from the two defenders, I got the ball, and had a clear path to the basket -- I am running straight to the basket and as I go up for the shot one of the defenders rotated over and under cut my legs. I got the shot off, and the ball went up in the air, inside the rim and rattled back out. The refs of course did not call a foul, and our coach went crazy. He ran out on the floor and screamed at the refs and everything. It was no turning back though and we had to walk off with the loss.

It was a crazy game, but it did show that we can battle with any team in this league. And although we didn't come away with the cup championship we are gunning for the league championship. I believe that we can take it.

I will be going home soon to be with my family. I will probably miss Christmas with them but I will bring in the New Year with them. I am looking forward to seeing them. I miss them all very much.

We will have at least 2 weeks offs so until next time everyone, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year's! I hope that Santa brought everyone what they wanted and I hope that this new year God brings you all as much happiness as the Year before.

God Bless Everyone!

I will talk to you all next year.

Meek

The Run to the Championship

Hello everyone, I want to start off by saying happy holidays to all. I hope that everyone is enjoying their time with their loved ones. I am still in Israel and probably wont get to make it home for Christmas. It is ok though, I will still have Christmas with my family when I get back there.

Ok let me fill you all in on whats been going on with me over here. This week has been a very tense week. We have been practicing and preparing for Cup play. During cup play it is like the NCAA'S, it is one and done. So throughout the week everyone was really on edge, we were playing Ramla for our first game, and they had knocked the club that I am playing for (Ra'annna) out the past couple of years so it was really important to concentrate on this up and coming game. After all the hard practicing and getting after each other pretty hard, the club treated us to a spa day. Something like a team bonding. We were able to get a full body massage, use the jacuzzi, as well as lay up in a suite and just relax. It was really a fun night. We all felt so good and relaxed after that.

The next day I surprised my teammates with gifts. They do not celebrate Christmas here but they do celebrate Hanukkah. I wanted to try and put the Christmas/Hanukkah spirit within the team and I think it worked. They were all so surprised and so excited. They thought that I was crazy to go out and buy each one of my teammates a gift. This is evidently not something that is done here very often, because they just kept saying that I was crazy. The only thing that mattered to me was that they were happy and that they enjoyed and appreciated their gifts. It was not about the money at all, and the smiles on their faces was priceless. It made it all worth it.
So now it is time for the game and one of our key players was having some knee trouble and before the game we knew for sure that she was not going to play. That was a little nerve racking because she is very important to our team, by the way sorry it is Charde Houston that I am speaking about. Everyone had to give a little more against a team that was almost favored to win anyway. Once the game started, we came out a little slow, but with a not so good performance in the first half, we were still only down by 7 at the half. During the second half once we tied the score the lead change would go back and forth until we finally got up by like 6. From then on we kept the lead, but Ramla who has Tan White and Nikki Anosike on their team as well as Adia Barnes would not just go away. They fought until the end.

This was a really hard fought game and I was so proud of my teammates for the way that we all stepped up and gave a little extra in Charde's absence. Now we sit and wait to see who it is that we play again. For some apparent reason they are going to draw out of a hat the two teams again for the second round. I have never seen this happen before, it is usually the first round and that's it. But not here, plus this year they are doing things a little different. Usually the cup games are spread out to play, but this year they are doing them all in one week. It is 3 games in 5 days. So if we keep winning, which I hope that we will, that will be our schedule from now until the break. I am looking forward to the next game and I am interested to see who it will be. Sorry everyone as of right now I don't know so I guess I will just have to let you all know next time. Ok I am off to bed now. Wish us luck for the cup, hopefully we will come away with the championship.

Please have a safe and Happy Holiday.

Merry Christmas to all!

Meek

One and Done..

Hello fellow bloggers!

I can finally say that this week is a little slower than the past. We only had one game this week and we played it yesterday. We played a team called Ne Tanya. They have two players that I know, and I know the lady tiger followers would know for sure.

One is former lady tiger Erica White who played pretty well for her club, and the other is Natasha Brackett, a former SEC player from Auburn. It was a pretty close game throughout. I had some foul issues and due to the aggressiveness that I tend to play on defense, the refs were not too hesitant to blow the whistle. I wasn't even guarding and American either. Usually they will allow the Americans to play, but yesterday for some strange reason that was not the case.

Anyways, I fouled out with like 15 mins to go in the game. My teammates were nervous but, guess what, they did what they were supposed to do. They held it together and performed well, and we walked away with a victory. As I cheered them on as I was on the bench I became even more proud of being on this team with a group women that just refused to give up.

This is all for this week. There is not very much more to this week besides two-a-days and preparing for the game on Monday. I am suppose to go by some of my teammates apartment so that they can teach me how to play poker, not really sure how this will go but hey we will see! If I don't learn it or enjoy it I will at least be able to say that I got out of the house and chilled with my teammates. It will at least be an outing.

Ok I must go now I am a little under the weather. I have a soar throat and a stuffy nose. So until next time I will talk to everyone later.

I will keep you all updated on my poker skills ...........

Hey!

Today was a good day... it was a day after a win that we needed and just had to get. This morning after an hour of practice we did something amazing. We had a scrimmage with the Special Olympic kids!

We had a blast. During every time out and half time everyone danced with one another. The ones that didn't get to perform in the scrimmage were able to leave the bleachers and come down and dance with everyone. My teammates and I had a blast. I think I already said that, LOL.

Today was a good day. I was very happy and so were the Olympic athletes. They really enjoyed themselves as well as enjoyed us. But they just don't know that they were just as important to us as a whole. At the end of the event they gave my teammate the MVD award. At first I wasn't exactly sure what that was, and we thought that it was similar to the MVP award so my teammates and I joked with Charde about how it is ironic that she received that award and not any of the actually athletes that it was for. LOL. But it was the MVD award which mean the Most Valuable Dancers. We all fell out laughing, but we understood it then. If anyone knows Charde they will know that she loves to dance and she was truly all over the place. She danced to every song that was played it was hilarious. We had a blast.

I know this was short, but I'll be back. I wanted to share this quick moment with you all.

Until next time....

Thanksgiving Abroad

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

I have to say that I am little jealous of those that are reading this from their homes right now. That means that you are there with all the good food that is prepared for this wonderful day. You are there with family, friends, and loved ones. I do hope that everyone had a great Thanksgiving though. We all have so much to be thankful for these days. I, for one, am very thankful for all the things that have happened to me and for me in my life thus far. Whether it was good, bad, or indifferent I am thankful for it, because I know I learned from it, grew from, or just was happy and blessed that it occurred.

I am healthy; family is doing well despite having our first holiday without my grandmother. I am abroad getting paid to do what it is that I love to do, I am surrounded by positive people and positive influences, I am meeting new people and learning about different cultures. I am getting the opportunity to see different parts of the world. Like I mentioned in a few blogs ago, I am thankful for the new addition to our family, my little niece JaʼNiya. My sister is healthy after giving birth to her, my other sister and brothers are all doing well, and so are my other nieces and nephews. Mom and dad are both strong and healthy. So I am very thankful. I am also thankful to be able to share my life experience with all of you that are following and keeping up with me.

Now I will share with you how my Thanksgiving eve and Thanksgiving were.

Let me fill you in on this great trip that I had to Russia.

First to begin with, we had a four hour flight to Moscow. Once we landed we took a bus for 10 hours to Kursk (another part of Russia). Now let me share with the size of this bus. It was smaller than the short yellow buses in America. There was very limited space and there was no room for us to put our luggage underneath at all, so you know what that meant, yep the luggage was on the bus with us as well. It was the most uncomfortable ride that I have ever witnessed in all my days of traveling. Not only were we cooped up on that little bus, it was also snowing very hard so the driver was being extra cautious with his drive so it took about 11-12 hours instead of 10.

While driving of course there were bathroom stops and we stopped at this one rest place alongside the road and the most unusual thing happened. When we opened the door the lady that was in charge of that part of the building says to us in Russian that we had to pay to use the rest room. Yes yaʼll pay! It was a great thing that we have a teammate that is Russian, because without her we would have never made it through this trip. Anyway there was problem that came about with the restroom, no one on our team had exchanged money yet so none of us had any rubles, which is Russian money, so the lady then says OK three for a dollar. Yes One American Dollar. I was just standing there smiling, because I have never seen such advertising like that in my life. Not when it came to using the rest room. But luckily we were able to give her a dollar to use the restroom. If not it would have been an even longer trip.

Now we are back in the little van and off we go heading towards Kursk again. About 3 to 4 hours later we stop again, but this time the bathroom is inside of the store. A problem occurs there as well. The clerk at the store was very upset for some apparent reason and gave all of us a hard time. She did allow us to use the restroom, but she refused to sell us anything out of the store. I am still unsure of what exactly happened for her to get that angry but I do know that she was arguing with our bus driver for a lengthy period of time. I just wanted to get in and get out. I was not feeling like we were the most welcomed people out there in Russia, even though I couldnʼt speak the language I did understand the body language and the tone in most of their voices. So I just sat back and observed how things were unfolding.

Finally after getting back on the road we get to our hotel, (now like 8:30 am) and we had left Israel at 2 pm the day before. Once we get there, we had to drop our bags off to our room and go straight back down for breakfast. My body was thinking that it was bed time not breakfast time, but I went down to eat and be with the team anyway. From here on out we are just eating and sleeping, trying to rest up for the game the following day. We did have a light practice that night so that we could get a better feel for their gym.

Finally it's game time and we come out playing very well in the beginning. We were only down by two points by half time, so we were somewhat pleased especially since this team had beat our team by forty points in our gym the last time we played them. This was before I was on the team, so I wasnʼt exactly sure what had happened the game before, I just know what I was told. So being down by 2 at the half was a great thing. Then everything went wrong from there. The second half we were a totally different team, and not in a good way. Some of the girls just stop playing, it was almost like they had given up, like the were content with just playing twenty minutes. Some were still fighting while others were in a rut. The Russian team did what most would do. They took advantage of that and opened the lead up within a blink of an eye.

I was fairly upset, but not because we lost the game, it was the way that we lost it. We didnʼt go down fighting in the last 20 minutes of the game. From there we went back to the hotel, showered, ate, packed our bags and were back on the road for another 10 hour bus ride back to the Moscow airport. This time it was a much bigger bus and it was a lot more comfortable. We did make one or two stops but didnʼt face as much attitude from the clerks as we did when we were going to Kursk. As I sat there and just watched, I wondered to myself how can these people always be so angry and mean. I didnʼt want to just assume anything, nor say that they were just some rude, not so nice people, because I donʼt really know their culture like that so I didnʼt want to judge. All I came away with was that they were not from the same type of culture as I was from, and I had to accept that and move one. Now donʼt get me wrong, I am not saying that there are not any Americans like that, I just havenʼt had to deal with any like that. One thing that I have learned while traveling abroad is that you have to adapt to the culture, things will not always be what you are use to so that what I try to do.

Finally we get to the airport, and it is 7 am but the problem with that is our flight is not until 2 pm. Another long wait before we get on a 4 hour flight back to Israel. But wait, of course we did have a little encounter when we got to the airport as well. Our bus driver dropped us off at the wrong terminal with all of our luggage and of course he left once we were all off the bus. Once we got in there our Russian teammate was trying to talk to the people in there to figure out what it was that we had to do. They told her that we had to catch a bus to the other terminal because it was too far to walk, and there was no way that we could have walked through the airport to get there. Their airports are not exactly like the ones in America.

Now once we get back outside and we are waiting for the bus to arrive it was freezing outside. It wasnʼt snowing anymore, but it was still cold. While standing out there with luggage and all, we were informed that once the bus gets there that we would have to pay 500 rubles for each piece of luggage that we put on the bus. Management was not too pleased with this, but what were we to do. So we get on the bus and finally get to the terminal that we need to be. We still had some time before we had to take off, so some of us found outlets to get on our computers, while others found places to lay their heads for awhile because they were extremely tired. This was one tough trip, but we did make it though.

Until next time have a safe and blessed Holiday.

Meek

Long Days..

Hello everyone,

It has been some pretty long days. After our game that we won last Monday, we played that Thursday against the Romania team in the Euro-Cup. We did not play well against them at all. It was like we were in a rush to do everything, but we bounced back from that game today.

We played against the undefeated team here in Israel. The team is Ashdod, they were on a good winning streak here in Israel and had not lose a game up until now. They have a really good team. Tamara Moore from the states is on that team, Sherril Baker, an SEC girl, as well as Jennifer Humphrey. We were very pleased with how well we played tonight.

It was an away game and everyone here was talking about how hard it was to play in that particular gym. We beat the undefeated team on their home court, in a place that is supposed to be so tough to play in by 17! Everyone chipped in and played a huge part to this win. The coaches and management were really happy and so were we. Now we are off to Russia to play in another Euro-Cup game.

I am not even sure where the place is where we are going, all I know is that they said it is -3 degrees there. That is just too cold! But hey that's all a part of it. I was hoping that I would get to see my best friend, Sylvia, but I think it is almost like 6-8 hours away from her, so we wont be seeing each other. Maybe next time.

Well folks that all for now, I have to run. Once again it is almost 2 am here but I wanted to share with you what was going on before I lay it down.

Until Next Time.......

Meek

Playing in Israel

So here we are... it is now Wednesday morning here in Israel, and we had our first game on Monday. It went very well, considering that I only had a day to practice with the team. I think the chemistry is already shaping up the way that we need it to. We have some pretty good Americans on our team, besides myself. We have two of the UConn players playing together, one of them a little older than the other, but that bond is still there. One is Kelly Schumacher, and she has the experience that is needed on all levels. She has won in college, has won two championships in the WNBA, and has the experience abroad as well. To top all of that, she is more importantly a great person and teammate.

The other former UConn player is one of the young up-and-coming talents: Charde Houston. After a good season in the WNBA with the Minnesota Lynx, alongside one of the great LSU Lady Tigers, Seimone Augustus, Charde is really playing well over here. She works very hard and competes when she steps on the floor. So far this has been a very good experience.

I played pretty well on Monday; I had 14 points and probably like 15 assists, but they only had me down for 7. The coaches and managers say that the stat man is new and is learning on the job, but ol' well, it was an overall good game and we came out with a win. We do have another game on Thursday against Romania. This game is in the Euro-Cup so I am looking forward to it. This will give our team another test to see how much we are really gelling together, as well as what it is that we need to work on even more for the future.

On to when I initially got here.

Things were so familiar to me from when I was here in 2005. The amazing part about it all is that I still kind of know my way around some of these parts. Many won't believe me, but I was kind of surprised that I did, because when I was here last time,s I didn't drive anywhere. I was here with one of my former teammates and Lady Tiger, Detrina White. Train, that's what we call her. She was very familiar with these parts because she had played here a couple of years already, so shetkind of took care of the baby Tiger. I was very happy to be here with her.

Some of my teammates were saying, "Temeka I am surprised that you remember all this", I was thinking to myself "so am I", but I just smiled and nodded my head.
The Isreali's have been very nice thus far, and everyone speaks English. There are a lot of place that have good American food, and just the other day I passed by the beach and it looked beautiful. I am going to get my chance to go down there as soon as we finish with the two-a-days and the weather gets a little better. It is winter time, but right now it is not that cold here. The past few days have been, but during the day it is very sunny and we've had really good weather. I will be sure to take pictures to let all of you see.

Well I guess I will get some rest now. It pretty early in the a.m. and I have practice in the morning. I will touch back with you all and let you know how Thursday turns out.

Until then God Bless,

Meek

Big News!

This has been one of the busiest, most exciting weeks that there is.

On Sunday, November 9th, my 14 year old cousin who is almost like my brother, did something that most grown ups have yet to do. He was baptized!!!! This was something that brought tears to my eyes. I know that my grandmother was smiling really big on that day. I was so proud of him. This is not something that someone made him do, this was his choice and I personally think that it was a great one. I know there are some that may read this blog and may not be as strong on the religious side, and that is truly OK, I am just sharing my happy moments with you all like always.

After the baptism we all went over to my Aunt's house and ate some good food. She had a space walk for the kids and everyone else just sat around and talked like old times. To me this was the first real moment that we were all together on one accord since the passing of my grandmother. It was a very special day.

Three days later, my baby sister blessed us all by giving birth to a beautiful baby girl. Her name is Ja'Niya she was 6 pounds 4.2 ounces. She is adorable. Yep y'all I am an Aunt again. I already have 4 other nieces and 2 nephews, but this niece, I was there with my sister when she delivered her.

Now I have to be honest with you all; I never thought that I would make it through the entire thing. The last time this situation occurred, it was with my other sister and when she started having pain and asked for some medicine I was not doing well. The doctor came in to help her to ease her pain, and when he pulled out that needle, I immediately started doing sit-ups and push ups. LOL

The doctor looks at me and then my Mom, and asked my Mom if he needed to give me a shot. I was not handling it that well. This time my baby sister needed me and I was right there for her. Her boyfriend was there as well, and I tip my hat off to him for stepping up and accepting his responsibility. Bless his heart y'all, he was so nervous, but it was so cute. I was very proud of my sister she did a very good job and everything went well. One thing I can say, is that it is true that pregnant women are very strong when those contractions hit! While I was holding my sister's hand and as the doctor is telling her to push, she squeezed my hand so tight, my knees almost buckled (LOL) AND my eyes almost crossed (LOL). I was trying my hardest not to scream, as well as pull my hand for her. She needed big sister and I was right there for her. My niece is very beautiful.

After watching all that and making sure that my sister was doing OK, I was on the road heading back to Baton Rouge to finish packing my clothes. I was leaving to head to Israel that Friday. That will be a LONG flight, but I'm excited to be playing for Raanana...

Talk to you guys soon,

Meek

UNCF Athlete Ambassadors

So much has been happening. So many positive things. I should be playing overseas right now, but I’m taking this time to work with my foundation – H.O.P.E.. We launched the HOPE site, but we’re constantly making improvements to it. I won’t stop until it’s just the way it needs to be, similar to my game.

I’ve been real busy. I had a national press conference, with the help from LSU; I adopted Magnolia Woods Elementary School in East Baton Rouge; I’ve been working out hard; I helped launch a program with UNCF (www.uncf.org) called “Athlete Ambassadors for Education” and I’m proud to be one of the inaugural athletes for the program;

That’s the picture from the game where we had an on-court presentation with NBA star Ben Gordon of the Chicago Bulls. I was able to catch up with my boy Tyrus Thomas (another LSU Tiger) while at the game, and we reminisced a bit about LSU. The best part was the day before, where I was able to talk to some high school students about the importance of education and not giving up. I’m always looking for opportunities to reach as many people as possible, and this was just another step in that direction.

The foundation is growing strong, and I’m excited about it. I’ll be launching my scholarship program in January with UNCF, so be on the lookout for that. I’m working on some holiday stuff as well, but I want to keep that a secret for now.

Now with basketball, I wasn’t too happy about the way the season ended, but please believe that I’m working harder now to come back stronger and better as a player. I’m working out every day at home (Louisiana) with my trainer, and I’m feeling pretty good. At any point I could be headed overseas, but that’s all in God’s hands right now. One day at a time.

Well, it’s about that time to get to working out. I’ll be in touch, and I’m working on staying more consistent with my blog. It’s a work in progress!

Meek

WNBA.com Feature!

Check out my feature on WNBA.com!!

Hurricane Gustav and Home

When I first heard about Hurricane Gustav heading to New Orleans, my heart automatically dropped.

I was like - no way, not again.

It seems like just last year that Katrina had come through and tore up the entire city. Katrina was 3 years ago, and people were just finally starting to get back to their normal everyday lives. There was some rain and some power outage in New Orleans, but luckily Gustav didn't hit it as hard, but it did hit the Baton Rouge area. I have a house in Baton Rouge and I had at least 10 of my family member staying in there trying to get somewhat away from Gustav. And Gustav still comes their way. There was no power and probably won't be any power for another 2-4 weeks.

Thank God no one got hurt, and that all turned out ok. I did have a few shingles that fell off my house, and the gate may not be standing. There were a few things that fell in my house off the walls etc., so hopefully I will get a chance to get down there and check on my house. I have some family that is in Atlanta, Tennessee, Florida, Dallas, etc.

Due to power being down and the towers being out, most of the phone lines are down (so is mine even though I am not even there). It becomes very hard at times when you can't get through to find out what is going with all the others, but I do know that they are all ok.

The one thing that I am looking forward to right now is seeing my family. My birthday is on the 6th of this month and they will all be in Houston on that day to watch the game and we will go out as a family after wards. My teammates will be there as well so that will take some of the storm stuff off their minds. We are headed to Texas for a back to back in San Antonio then Houston. So I will definitely keep everyone up to date with what is going on in New Orleans and Baton Rouge.

Thanks again for all the support.

Focused and Energized

They did it! They brought back the Gold! I'm so proud of them, and I'm very proud of my teammates. I was happy to see the ladies get the Gold medal. The first time Gold Medalist and the multiple Gold Medalist. Lisa grabbing her 4th Olympic Gold medal is amazing. She played like the true champion that she is, and left her mark on the game. DeLisha and Candace played well, too, and I'm just happy to have them on my team. I am also happy for my two former teammates, Sylvia and Seimone. Sylvia had an awesome Olympics, as she led the team in both scoring and rebounding. Not bad for a first time Olympian! Big Syl dominated in a few of those games, and it's easy to say that she is officially back! Her and Dwayne Wade showed that they are back at the top of their game. Congrats to the US Men's Team as well!

: I was happy to see the ladies get the gold medal, the first time gold medalist and the multiple gold medalist. I am so happy for my two former teammates in Sylvia and seimone. sylvia had an awesome olympics, she led the olympic team in both Scoring and rebounding. Not bad for a first time olypian.

Now it's time to get back into the season. Over the break, our team spent time cleaning up some things that we needed to work on as a team. We have been utilizing this time to make our team better, so that when our Olympians returned, everything would be smooth sailing.

Other than that we have been hanging out with each other, going bowling, movies, celebrating peoples' birthdays, etc. It has been a lot of fun.

Now it's time to get back to business!

See you on the court!

Meek

I’m BAAAAAAAAAACK!

I’ve missed all of you in my absence. Thank you for all of the support, as I know there have been questions about why you all haven’t seen me on the court, or even in uniform. You know, life happens. And in my life, I lost someone significant. Someone that meant so much to me. Someone that meant so much to so many people. My Grandma. Jewel Johnson. R.I.P.

My time away from the Sparks allowed me to be there for the person that allowed me to become the woman that I am today. My Grandma lived a great life, and touched so many people. She was a Teacher’s Assistant in Louisiana, and a teacher to many more (inside and outside of the classroom). I appreciate the Sparks for their support, and I appreciate all of you for missing me. It means a lot to me.

But now I’m back. So much has been going on, but it’s good to be back with my teammates and playing ball again. The fight was big news, but we’re glad to have that incident behind us. In my first two games back, we lost to Connecticut (while most of our team was suspended) and then a tough one to the NY Liberty. It felt good to be on the court and making plays, but we have a tough road ahead of us. We lost games we shouldn’t have lost, and now with a break in the season, we’ll have to regroup and play harder than ever in the 2nd half of the season to reach our goal and become WNBA champions. Some of our players will be representing Team USA in Beijing, and we’ll all be rooting for them. Lisa, Candace, DeLisha, we’ll all be rooting for them to bring back the gold medal. I look at it as my teammates being able to be World Champions and WNBA Champions. Bring it home!!

Stay tuned, because I have some exciting news coming up very soon!!

Meek

Don't Mess With Meek & The Sparks!!

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H.O.P.E.

It’s been a minute since I’ve last updated all of you, but I’m doing well. I’m concentrating on my game, and making sure that I do all that I can to help my team win. More than that, I’m starting to work more on my non-profit, HOPE.

I’m excited about getting things started as soon as possible, as I want to reach out and help as many people as possible. I’m planning a few autograph signings so that I can connect with all of you. I want to meet as many of you as possible, and I’m planning some things in Los Angeles and in Louisiana. It’s important for me to give back as much as possible, because I’m blessed to be in the position that I am in.

People think it’s all about basketball and the fame, but I feel that it’s much more than that. I believe that it is what you do with that fame, and how much you impact those that watch and look up to you. That’s my goal with my foundation. I want people to know that I’m always going to do all that I can for those that I can reach and touch. It keeps me going. All of you motivate and inspire me, just as much as I motivate and inspire all of you.

I hope to have a signing as soon as next week, but these things can be tricky. Just know that I’ll be doing all that I can to make it happen.

Heaven Opens People’s Eyes – H.O.P.E.

Meek

Coming Home

After a tough win last night against my best friend, Sylvia Fowles, we are now 4-1. It was tough to see Big Sil get hurt, but hopefully she’ll be back in no time. I believe that Sylvia will bounce back strong. The way that she hurt herself was wild. What I mean by that is Sylvia is helping to revolutionize the women's game. Before she fell and hurt herself, she went up and blocked Delisha's shot off of the back board. It was unbelievable! But the refs called goaltending. This is something that you don’t see every day in women's basketball. After thinking about how things happened, Delisha joked with me saying that I set her up to get her shot blocked! It was funny, because I believe that I did pass her the ball on that play. She joked saying that Sylvia and I planned for that to happen. I laughed really hard and said yeah right, because she blocked my shot as well and I know I didn’t plan that! It was really funny. But we were both extremely happy for Sylvia and we are all praying that she has a speedy recovery.

Delisha continues to play well, and Candace enjoyed returning home to Chicago. We rebounded from our loss to Indiana last week, and now we’re looking forward to continuing our streak against Phoenix on Friday. This will be a big game and a rematch from the season-opener, and you can bet that we’ll be ready! We’re excited to finally be playing at home with all of our fans cheering us on. This was a long trip, and I’m happy to be coming home to play in front of all of you!

Being on the road is not easy, but it comes with being a WNBA player. With the Lakers pushing for the championship, we’re even more excited to see if LA will be home to both the NBA and WNBA championship. The Lakers’ coaches have the team playing well, and we feed off of their energy. I’m just ready to have my own breakout game. I’ve been playing okay, but I want to play better. Luckily it’s a long season, and I know when I’m needed, I won’t let the team down or any of you down! Trust me on that. If I have to watch more film, I’ll do that. If I have to take more time and work on my game after practice, I’ll do that to. I’m going to do what it takes – that’s the bottom line.

Well, I need to get some rest, as this road trip took a lot out of me. I’ll be in touch…

Heaven Opens People’s Eyes

Meek

Great Start!

What a way to start the season!

That was a big win for us against the defending champs. That was a battle. The Mercury were a handful, but the great thing is that the Sparks were on top when it was all said and done. Each possession was big, and we all came to play. All of our matchups are going to be tough, since we have that target on our backs. Everyone is going to bring their A game whenever they step on the floor with us. We go at each other hard, kinda like those new WNBA commercials. My teammate, Lisa returned to her old form. Candace proved that she is the player that we all knew she was. But, I was really excited to be rejoined with Delisha Milton-Jones. She was my teammate during my rookie season in Washington. People don’t know, but she had just won the championship in Spain, flew back to LA, had one practice, and played a great game in her first game back in the Sparks uniform! As many may already know, Delisha is a great addition to our team. She’s the ultimate team player, and she brings so much to us. Her competitiveness, her drive, and having the heart of a champion is what I truly appreciate about Delisha.

As for me, I wasn’t too thrilled with my play, but it’s just the first game. I’ve been watching film, and I’m going to continue to get better. Trust me on that. Next up is the Atlanta Dream! Time to make some dreams come true (for the Sparks, that is)!

I’m going to be posting some photos from our first game and from the time I spent serving all of you at McDonald’s. We (my teammates joined me) had so much fun at McDonald’s, and it’s good to have a sponsor like them for the WNBA. Our league will continue to grow, just watch…

If any of you are around, I’m going to be at a Carl’s Jr. event on Thursday. I’m excited, as they have this new sirloin burger that I can’t wait to try! McDonald’s, Carl’s Jr…. You know I’m going to be working harder to stay in shape! 

Thanks to all of you for your support, and I hope you’re enjoying the site!! Leave me a message, and I promise to answer them. We will be adding a new forum as the season goes on, so keep your eyes open for that!!

As always,

Heaven Opens People’s Eyes

Meek

Bring It On!

It’s a new season. A CHAMPIONSHIP season. That’s what me, my teammates and my coaches are focused on this season. Anything less than a championship is a disappointment. We have Lisa coming back stronger and everyone knows we drafted Candace Parker. I feel refreshed and healthy, and ready to rip through the season. I’m expecting a career year this year, as I have spent the time to get healthy and worked on every part of my game. The off-season is when players grow into championship players. This off-season I worked. I worked hard. I WORKED HARD!!

I’m so excited about my new website and things that I have planned for this year. My non-profit, H.O.P.E. (Heaven Opens People’s Eyes) is going to grow just like my game. From Louisiana to Los Angeles. La. to LA. I’m going to keep you posted. Be sure to keep checking back, as my site will be updated consistently. Email me, leave messages, send mail, I’ll be listening and responding.

Most of all, I just want you all to know that we are looking for you to be our 6th Man. With your cheers and support, we can bring back the championship. We WILL bring back the championship! You’re more than our fans, you’re our voice!