Jodie Meeks

Jodie Meeks
Jodie Meeks
Born	August 21, 1987 (age 39); None
Occupation(s)	Basketball player, assistant coach
Years active	2009–2022 (player), 2022–present (coach)
Known for	Former professional basketball player; assistant coach for the New Orleans Pelicans; University of Kentucky record holder for single-game points and three-pointers; 2019 NBA champion with Toronto Raptors

Orestes Jodie Meeks II (born August 21, 1987) is a former professional basketball player and current assistant coach for the New Orleans Pelicans in the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played collegiate basketball at the University of Kentucky, where he set a school record by scoring 54 points in a single game on January 13, 2009, while also establishing a new single-game record for three-pointers made with 10 during a nationally broadcast ESPN matchup against the Tennessee Volunteers. Meeks was part of the Toronto Raptors team that secured the 2019 NBA championship. In 2024, he was inducted into the University of Kentucky Athletics Hall of Fame.

Early life

At Norcross High School, Meeks led his team to its inaugural state basketball title in 2006 under coach Eddie Martin. Throughout his senior year, he averaged 23.6 points per game overall and elevated his scoring to 28.3 points during the state playoffs. His accolades included being named the 2006 Atlanta Journal-Constitution Player of the Year, Gwinnett Daily Post Player of the Year, Atlanta Tipoff Club Metro Player of the Year, and he earned MVP honors on the Georgia High School Association (GHSA) All Star Team. Additionally, Meeks took part in notable all-star events such as the 2006 Kentucky Derby Festival Basketball Classic.

Rated as a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, Meeks was ranked seventh nationally among shooting guards and placed 39th overall in the class of 2006.

Freshman season

Meeks made his collegiate debut on November 2, 2006, contributing 17 points off the bench. On December 16, 2006, he was named CBS/Chevrolet Player of the Game after scoring a then-career-high 18 points against Louisville. Throughout his freshman year, Meeks earned SEC Freshman of the Week honors three times and was unanimously selected for the SEC All-Freshman team. He also received recognition on The Collegeinsider.com Freshmen All-America team, an accolade acknowledged by Division I coaches and NBA talent evaluators.

Sophomore season

Although expectations were high and Meeks began strongly with a 34-point performance in an exhibition match, his sophomore campaign was curtailed to just 11 games due to a sports hernia diagnosis.

Junior season

During his junior year, Meeks delivered several remarkable performances including scoring 39 points in the season opener against Virginia Military Institute and tallying 37 points in the Findlay Invitational championship game facing Kansas State Wildcats. On December 20, he recorded a career-best at that time with 46 points at Freedom Hall, tying Kentucky’s record for three-pointers made in a single game with nine. He followed this with a 32-point outing against Tennessee State University.

On January 13, 2009, Meeks established a new University of Kentucky single-game scoring record by dropping 54 points against Tennessee, surpassing Dan Issel’s previous mark. In that game, he also set a new school record by making 10 three-pointers—exceeding Tony Delk's former record—and went a flawless 14-for-14 from the free-throw line. On February 11, he secured victory with a decisive three-pointer versus the Florida Gators. Shortly after, on February 14, Meeks posted 45 points against the Arkansas Razorbacks, setting the highest individual scoring total ever recorded at Bud Walton Arena. Additionally, he established Kentucky’s single-season record for three-pointers made with a total of 117.

Meeks earned unanimous selection to the All-SEC First Team and became the first player since Chuck Hayes (2004–05) to be named AP First Team All-SEC. He was honored as USBWA District IV Player of the Year and received Second Team All-American distinctions from AP, USBWA, NABC, and Sporting News—achieving consensus Second Team All-American status for the 2008–09 season.

On May 10, 2014, Meeks completed his business marketing degree at the University of Kentucky. He continued taking courses during off-seasons following his selection by the Milwaukee Bucks in order to emphasize education’s enduring importance beyond his basketball career.

Milwaukee Bucks (2009–2010)

On April 7, 2009, Meeks entered the 2009 NBA draft without engaging an agent, preserving the possibility of returning to Kentucky. By May 28, he indicated that if he was not chosen in the first round, he would resume his college career. Ultimately, on June 15, Meeks decided to remain in the draft, foregoing his final collegiate season. He was selected 41st overall by the Milwaukee Bucks on June 25. Despite this, Meeks found limited playing opportunities due to a crowded guard lineup under Head Coach Scott Skiles.

Philadelphia 76ers (2010–2012)

On February 18, 2010, Meeks was traded to the Philadelphia 76ers alongside Francisco Elson in exchange for Primoz Brezec and Royal Ivey. He completed his rookie year without any starts and received minimal minutes under coach Eddie Jordan.

During his sophomore season, although initially projected to have a minor role behind second overall draft pick Evan Turner and starter Lou Williams, new coach Doug Collins appointed Meeks as the starting shooting guard when Williams shifted to sixth man duties. In just his second start, Meeks delivered an impressive 26-point performance with efficient shooting.

Meeks maintained his position as Philadelphia’s starting shooting guard throughout the 2011–12 Philadelphia 76ers season, although his playing time decreased as Turner gained more minutes. On March 27, 2012, Meeks achieved a personal best by scoring 31 points.

Los Angeles Lakers (2012–2014)

Meeks inked a two-year contract with the Los Angeles Lakers on August 13, 2012. On November 30, he tallied 21 points along with a then career-high seven three-pointers during a commanding 122–103 victory over the Denver Nuggets.

On March 9, 2014, Meeks set a new career scoring record with 42 points in a close 114–110 win against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

Detroit Pistons (2014–2016)

Meeks signed a three-year agreement worth $19.5 million with the Detroit Pistons on July 14, 2014. After missing the first 22 games of the 2014–15 NBA season due to a lower back injury, he made his debut on December 12 by contributing 12 points off the bench in a narrow 105–103 victory over the Phoenix Suns, ending a 13-game losing streak.

On December 30, he scored 34 points including a career-best nine three-pointers in a dominant 109–86 win against the Orlando Magic, falling just short of Joe Dumars' franchise record of ten triples.

On October 30, 2015, Meeks underwent surgery to repair a fracture in his right foot and was expected to miss between 12 and 16 weeks. He returned on April 13, 2016, posting 20 points in the final game of the season versus the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Orlando Magic (2016–2017)

Meeks was traded to the Orlando Magic on June 29, 2016, in exchange for a future conditional second-round pick. On July 19, he had surgery to stabilize the fifth metatarsal in his right foot, which delayed his season debut. After missing the first 19 games, Meeks returned on December 2, scoring 10 points and recording three steals in just 17 minutes against the Philadelphia 76ers. On January 2, 2017, he achieved a season-high of 23 points during a victory over the New York Knicks. Unfortunately, on January 19, Meeks suffered a dislocated thumb with sprained ligaments that required surgery and sidelined him for four to six weeks. He made his comeback on March 20 after missing a total of 26 games.

Washington Wizards (2017–2018)

On July 12, 2017, Meeks inked a deal with the Washington Wizards. However, on April 13, 2018, he faced a 25-game suspension without pay after testing positive for ipamorelin and GHRP-2, violating the NBA/NBPA anti-drug policy.

Subsequently, on October 15, 2018, Meeks was traded to the Milwaukee Bucks along with future second-round draft rights and cash considerations in exchange for a future second-round pick. After his suspension concluded on November 24, the Bucks released him the following day.

Toronto Raptors (2019)

Meeks joined the Toronto Raptors on a 10-day contract beginning February 20, 2019. Although the team did not immediately offer him a second 10-day contract, he returned on March 26 to finish out the season. On March 30, he posted a season-best performance with 14 points and 5 rebounds during a decisive 124–101 victory over the Bulls.

He played an instrumental role in the Raptors' triumph over the reigning two-time champions Golden State Warriors in the 2019 NBA Finals, helping secure the franchise's first NBA title in six games.

Raptors 905 (2022)

Meeks signed with the Raptors 905 of the NBA G League on January 10, 2022, but was waived less than three months later on March 18.

National team career

Representing the United States men's national basketball team, Meeks competed at the 2022 FIBA AmeriCup, contributing to the team’s bronze medal finish.

Coaching career

On September 15, 2022, Meeks embarked on his coaching journey as an assistant coach for the Birmingham Squadron. Later, on September 26, 2024, he advanced to become an assistant coach with the New Orleans Pelicans.

Player profile

Primarily recognized as an offensive threat specializing in three-point shooting—especially during fast breaks—Meeks was slightly undersized for his shooting guard position but earned respect as a dependable defender.

Regular season

|- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Milwaukee | 41 || 0 || 11.9 || .362 || .280 || .857 || 1.8 || .5 || .3 || .1 || 4.1 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Philadelphia | 19 || 0 || 12.3 || .440 || .380 || .722 || 1.4 || .9 || .3 || .1 || 5.9 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Philadelphia | 74 || 64 || 27.9 || .425 || .397 || .894 || 2.3 || 1.1 || .9 || .1 || 10.5 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Philadelphia | style="background:#cfecec;"|66*||50||24.9||.409||.365||.906||2.4||.8||.6||.0||8.4 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers | 78||10||21.3||.387||.357||.896||2.2||.9||.7|| .1||7.9 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| L.A. Lakers |77||70||33.2||.463||.401||.857||2.5||1.8||1.4|| .1||15.7 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Detroit |60||0||24.4||.416||.349||.906||1.7||1.3||1.0|| .1||11.1 |- | style="text-align:left;"| | style="text-align:left;"| Detroit |3||0||14.3||.350|||.444|||.1000|||1.7|||1.0|||0|||0|||7.3 |-

| style="text-align:left;" |  
| style="text-align:left;" | Orlando 
|36||10||20.5||.402||.409||.878||2.1||1.3||0.9|||.1|||9.1

|-

| style="text-align:left;" |  
| style="text-align:left;" | Washington 
|77||0||14.5||.399||.343||.863||1.6||0.9||0.4|||.1|||6.3

|-

|style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;" | † 
|align="left" | Toronto 
|8||0||13.0|||.538|||.444||| .619|||1.5|||1.0||| .1|||.1|||6.4

|- class="sortbottom"

|style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career
|539||204||22.5||.420||.373||.879||2.1||1.1||0.8||| .1|||9.3

Playoff Appearances

|- | style="text-align:left;" | 2011 NBA Playoffs | style="text-align:left;" | 2010–11 Philadelphia 76ers season | 5 ||| .5 ||| .25 ||| .419 ||| .444 ||| .833 ||| .2 ||| .8 ||| .6 ||| .0 ||| .78 |- | style="text-align:left;" | 2012 NBA Playoffs | style="text-align:left;" | 2011–12 Philadelphia 76ers season | 13 ||| 1 ||| 7.8 ||| 346 ||| 231 ||| 1000 ||| 03 ||| 03 ||| 02 |||| 01 ||| 27 |- | style="text-align:left;" | 2013 NBA Playoffs | style="text-align:left;" | 2012–13 Los Angeles Lakers season | 01 |||| 20 |||| 25 |||| 100 |||| 20 |||| 10 |||| 00 |||| 40 |- | style="text-align:left;" | 2016 NBA Playoffs | style="text-align:left;" | 2015–16 Detroit Pistons season | 01 |||| 02 |||| 100 |||| 00 |||| 00 |||| 00 |||| 02 |- | style="text-align:left;background:#afe6ba;" | 2019 NBA Playoffs† | align="left" | 2018–19 Toronto Raptors season | 14 |||| 04 |||| 31 |||| 15 |||| 67 |||| 06 |||| 03 |||| 01 |||| 16 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Career Totals | 34 |||| 06 |||| 09 |||| 363 |||| 283 |||| 920 |||| 07 |||| 03 |||| 03 |||| 01 |||| 30 |}

University Career

Template:NBA player statistics start |- | style="text-align:left;" | 2006–07 | style="text-align:left;" | Kentucky | 34 || 1 || 22.1 || .419 || .364 || .897 || 2.8 || 1.5 || .9 || .1 || 8.7 |- | style="text-align:left;" | 2007–08 | style="text-align:left;" | Kentucky | 11 || 5 || 23.2 || .307 || .320 || .794 || 2.6 || 1.5 || .5 || .1 || 8.8 |- | style="text-align:left;" | 2008–09 | style="text-align:left;" | Kentucky | 36 || 36 || 34.4 || .463 || .406 || .902 || 3.4 || 1.8 || 1.3 || .1 ||| 23.7 |- class="sortbottom" | style="text-align:center;" colspan="2"| Overall College Career | 81 ||| 42 ||| 27.7 ||| .436 ||| .386 ||| .890 ||| 3.0 ||| 1.6 ||| 1.1 ||| .1 15.4

Additional resources