Dixon’s Resurgence Shapes Up Sparks

Even though the Sparks are 14-3, the same record they had last year after 17 games, the first half of the 2003 season has been tumultuous for the two-time defending league champions.

Mwadi Mabika, a first-team All-WNBA selection last season, has struggled because of injuries. Former top reserve Latasha Byears was waived last month for reasons never fully explained. Coach Michael Cooper says he has a good bench, but still leans heavily on his starters. And the league has gotten more balanced and competitive.

So the return of Tamecka Dixon to her All-Star form of two years ago could not have come at a better time for the Sparks. Besides Lisa Leslie, Dixon has given the Sparks their most consistent scoring threat.

Now in her seventh year, Dixon, 27, is averaging 14.4 points. That is second on the team to Leslie’s 18.4 average, and ranks 14th in the league. It is Dixon’s highest average since her career-best 16.2 in 1998.

There are other signs pointing to Dixon’s resurgence. Her field-goal percentage is 44.9, up from last year’s 39.1. And from the free-throw line she is shooting a career-best 91.7% , sixth-best in the league.

Dixon will join teammates Leslie and Nikki Teasley on the Western Conference team at the All-Star game Saturday in New York. Cooper, who is coaching the West, said Wednesday that Dixon will be in the starting lineup, replacing injured Houston guard Cynthia Cooper.

Dixon said her great first half could be attributed to two things.

She is pain free for the first time in two years. The heel and ankle injuries that hampered her in the 2001 playoffs have healed. So have the back and knee injuries sustained during last year’s WNBA finals, when Dixon slipped on wet steps while exiting the team bus in New York before a shoot-around on the morning of Game 1.

Also, she lost weight while playing in Italy over the winter, and that has restored her speed. She admits that she was heavier than her listed 148 pounds last year -- “at least 151 pounds,” she said with a mischievous smile -- but won’t say exactly how much weight she dropped.

This much is clear: Her 5-9 frame is leaner, and her reactions and movements are quicker.

“She’s more physically fit, and when that happens, it causes your injuries to heal quicker, which enables you to play the way you’re supposed to play,” Cooper said. “She is like the ‘Meek’ of two years ago -- slashing, cutting to the basket, being very aggressive on offense, and her defense is coming along.”

Those are the kind of words Dixon wants to hear. She knows the team depends on her to shoot well enough outside to keep defenses honest, and give Leslie room to maneuver on the inside. That, and the ability to beat defenders to the basket with a quick first step, was the biggest thing missing from her game last season.

Dixon had worked hard on the weights after the 2001 season and bulked up her arms and thighs. But the added strength did not compensate for the injuries.

“I did come into [training] camp last year at a decent weight, the weight I had been successful playing with,” Dixon said. “But I still wasn’t 100% physically. It was more like 75%. I came into camp with a little pain, just enough to restrict my movement.

“I couldn’t play on instinct, I had to try to anticipate everything. And it slowed me down.”

While playing for the Italian club Rovereto, Dixon did not overextend herself. She kept her practices and game participation at a minimum, making sure she got rest.

“The [Italian] coach -- his name is Marco but I can’t remember his last name -- worked with me, allowing me to rest a lot during the practices,” Dixon said. “Gradually I could again make moves I couldn’t make before, and I wouldn’t feel pain. Soon, I could do other things I couldn’t do two years ago.”

From the first preseason game, when she scored the winning basket against San Antonio with 18 seconds to play, to 20-point regular-season outings against Sacramento, Detroit and San Antonio, the confidence and energy that was lacking in Dixon’s game has been on full display.

“I think she was unhappy with last year, performance-wise,” teammate DeLisha Milton said. “She knows she wasn’t able to do what her mind wanted her body to do on the court. But she is a smart player, and did not beat herself up over that.

“This year she is making a lot of noise. She’s been consistent all year long.”