Ask anyone in the Mercury organization to describe Temeka Johnson’s value to the team and there are two words that you’ll undoubtedly hear them say - “stability” and “leader.”

Only two games into the 2009 season and Meek has shown exactly why the Mercury traded for her, and how important she is to this team.

This Mercury team has needed a player like Temeka for a while; someone who can create shots for Diana and Cappie while at the same time providing stability and structure, but who also can set the tone on defense.  “This team starts and ends with me offensively and defensively,” Meek said. “So, sometimes I’ll pick it up on the defensive end even more and that attitude and mindset will trickle down to the rest of the team.”

Currently 2nd in the league in assists averaging 7.0 a game (which trails only Becky Hammon at 8.0), Temeka’s leadership has influenced the entire club and has helped alleviate the strain on Diana and Cappie already.  “Oh T.J.’s been great,” Taurasi said after the Liberty game. “She’s confident, she knows where we want the ball, and gets us in our sets.  On the other side of the ball when you see T.J. pick up defense full-court, and get after it, you have to get after it too.  She really pushes the tempo on both sides.”

What I personally love about Meek is that she’s all about ‘we‘, not ‘me‘, and that’s exactly what it takes to be an effective leader in any industry.  Too often in professional sports, it becomes about stats and accomplishments instead of helping others get better and improving together collectively.  In fact, when I told Meek she was 2nd in the league in assists, she had absolutely no idea.  “Really? Wow. Who am I behind?” Meek asked me, I told her Becky Hammon and she replied, “Okay, I’ll keep that in mind. But you know what though, my assists come from my teammates.  They run the floor for me and I just get them the ball and they finish it. I couldn’t ask for better finishers.”

Being a leader isn’t easy and most individuals truly aren’t up for how difficult it can be, especially at such a high level.   Meek, however, takes it on full force.  “It’s a tough position being a leader,” Meek told me, “it’s very tough, especially as a point guard, and there’s not a lot of people who can do it.  I accept that challenge and try to be the best leader on any given night.  But I’m not the perfect person either and sometimes I need a little pick-up myself!”

You can certainly tell how grateful Meek is to be in the position she’s in, regardless of the challenges.  I’ve said this before, but there is an unmistakable positive ‘vibe’ or ‘aura’ surrounding this team, and the best way to describe it is that it’s special and permeates through the entire organization.  “It’s a young team but they know what it takes,” Meek told me. “Everybody is just trying to stay on the same page and it doesn’t matter who gets the credit as long as we get the win.”

Speaking of wins, starting 2-0 is fine and dandy, but Temeka will be the first to tell you they still have a long way to go.  “If we started 2-0 and felt like everything is great, that’s the wrong mindset to have,” Meek said about the fast start. “We definitely have some things we need to work on and each practice and each game helps us head in the right direction.”

The Mercury travel to Sacramento on Friday, then back to Phoenix on Saturday for a back-to-back series against the Monarchs before hosting tough games against the Lynx, Sparks, and Storm at home.  “It’s nice to have games at home but the one thing we want to keep in mind is we want to win on the road,” Meek said. “We want to go out, give it our all, and bring it every night no matter what.”

So, what does Meek think of being described as a leader and providing stability for this team?

“Stability and leadership?” Meek smiled and humbly stated, “those are two great qualities.”

Spoken like a true leader.

June 11th, 2009 3:35 PM