LaFarrell Darnell Mee (born February 11, 1971) is an American former professional
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
player who played 12 seasons in the
National Basketball League (NBL). He played
college basketball
In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...
for
Western Kentucky
Western Kentucky is the western portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It generally includes part or all of several more widely recognized regions of the state.
;Always included
* The Jackson Purchase, the state's westernmost generally recogniz ...
before being selected by the
Golden State Warriors with the 34th overall pick in the
1993 NBA draft
The 1993 NBA draft took place on June 30, 1993, at The Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The draft had some talented players at the top, but injuries and personal problems hurt many of them. Chris Webber, Penny Hardaway, Allan Hou ...
. He played 40 games in the
NBA for the
Denver Nuggets. In his 12 seasons in Australia, Mee was named the
NBL Best Defensive Player five times and won two
NBL championships. He became an Australian citizen in 2006.
College career
Coming out of Tennessee's
Cleveland High School in 1989, Mee sat out his freshman season at
Western Kentucky
Western Kentucky is the western portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It generally includes part or all of several more widely recognized regions of the state.
;Always included
* The Jackson Purchase, the state's westernmost generally recogniz ...
due to failing to qualify academically.
Between 1990 and 1993, Mee played for the Hilltoppers and averaged 13.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 2.8 assists and 1.2 blocks in 91 games.
Professional career
Coming out of college, Mee played in the
United States Basketball League
The United States Basketball League (USBL) was a professional men's spring basketball league. The league was formed in 1985 and ceased operations in 2008. The USBL started in 1985 as one of the first basketball leagues to play a late-spring to ...
for the Daytona Beach Hooters.
Mee was selected by the
Golden State Warriors with the 34th overall pick in the
1993 NBA draft
The 1993 NBA draft took place on June 30, 1993, at The Palace of Auburn Hills in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The draft had some talented players at the top, but injuries and personal problems hurt many of them. Chris Webber, Penny Hardaway, Allan Hou ...
. He was subsequently traded to the
Denver Nuggets, where he played 40
NBA games over two seasons.
In 1995, Mee had stints in the
Continental Basketball Association for the
Tri-City Chinook
The Tri-City Chinook were a professional basketball team based in Kennewick, Washington. They played 4 seasons in the Continental Basketball Association (CBA), the defunct development league for the National Basketball Association (NBA). The te ...
and
Yakima Sun Kings
The Yakima SunKings are a basketball team located in Yakima, Washington, covering the central Washington sports market of Yakima, Tri-Cities, and Ellensburg and plays at the Yakima SunDome. The team competed in the Continental Basketball Associat ...
.
In
1996, Mee moved to Australia to play for the
Canberra Cannons
The Canberra Cannons are a defunct basketball team that competed in Australia's National Basketball League (NBL). They went into financial administration in 2003 and were relocated to Newcastle, where they became the Hunter Pirates. After t ...
of the
National Basketball League.
For the 1996–97 season, Mee moved to France to play for
Gravelines
Gravelines (, ; ; ) is a commune in the Nord department in Northern France. It lies at the mouth of the river Aa southwest of Dunkirk. It was formed in the 12th century around the mouth of a canal built to connect Saint-Omer with the sea. As ...
.
Mee returned to Australia in
1998
1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''.
Events January
* January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...
to play for the
Adelaide 36ers
The Adelaide 36ers, also known as the Sixers, are an Australian professional men's basketball team in the National Basketball League (NBL). The 36ers are the only team in the league representing the state of South Australia and are based in th ...
. He continued on with the 36ers in
1998–99 and
1999–2000.
After a stint in Italy with
Kinder Bologna,
he returned to the 36ers for a fourth season in
2000–01 season.
For the 2001–02 season, Mee moved to Germany to play for
Bayer Giants Leverkusen
Bayer Giants Leverkusen is a professional basketball club, part of the TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen sports club based in Leverkusen, Germany. It currently plays in ProA, the second division of German basketball.
Based on the number of titles, Leverku ...
.
Mee began the 2002–03 season in France with BC Besançon,
before returning to Australia in November 2002 to play out the
NBL season with the
Cairns Taipans
The Cairns Taipans are an Australian professional basketball team based in Cairns, Queensland. The Taipans compete in the National Basketball League (NBL) and play their home games at the Cairns Convention Centre, known colloquially as "The ...
.
Between 2003 and 2005, Mee played for the
Wollongong Hawks
The Illawarra Hawks (formerly the Wollongong Hawks and The Hawks) is an Australian professional basketball team based in Wollongong, New South Wales. The Illawarra Hawks compete in the National Basketball League (Australia), National Basketball ...
in the NBL.
He returned to the Taipans in 2005 and played out his career in Cairns over the next four seasons.
In February 2006, he was named the
NBL's Best Defensive Player for a record fifth time.
National team career
Mee represented the
Australian national team in 2007 at the
FIBA Oceania Championship
FIBA Oceania Championship was the Oceania basketball championships that took place every two years between national teams of the continent. Through the 2015 edition, the Oceania Championship was also a qualifying tournament for the Basketball ...
.
Coaching career
After the end of his playing career in 2009, Mee returned to the United States and finished his degree in recreation administration at Western Kentucky University. During that time, he was a voluntary assistant coach at the WKU men's basketball team. He then worked as a coach at the high school level and in 2013 became an assistant coach at
Moberly Area Community College
Moberly Area Community College (MACC) is a public community college based in Moberly, Missouri. In addition to the Moberly campus, MACC has four campuses across a large portion of Northeastern and central Missouri: Columbia, Hannibal, Kirksville ...
. Mee then held the head coaching position with the
Bowling Green Bandits in the ABA. In the 2016 season, he served as head coach of the Woodville Warriors in Australia. After one season, he returned to the US, where he started working as a basketball coach in his hometown of Cleveland, Tennessee.
References
External links
NBL player profile (2006)NBL player profile (2007)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mee, Darnell
1971 births
Living people
Adelaide 36ers players
American expatriate basketball people in Australia
American expatriate basketball people in France
American expatriate basketball people in Germany
American expatriate basketball people in Italy
American men's basketball players
Basketball players from South Australia
Basketball players from Tennessee
Bayer Giants Leverkusen players
BCM Gravelines players
Cairns Taipans players
Canberra Cannons players
Denver Nuggets players
Golden State Warriors draft picks
People from Cleveland, Tennessee
Shooting guards
Tri-City Chinook players
Virtus Bologna players
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball players
Wollongong Hawks players
Yakima Sun Kings players