Meeks very mighty in starting five

When Jodie Meeks was growing up, he didn’t want to be a slasher like Allen Iverson or a banger like Shaquille O’Neal. He emulated his game after a silky shooter — Ray Allen.

“Being in high school and middle school, I tried to pattern my game after him,” Meeks said before Thursday’s game vs. Allen’s Celtics. “Watching him, he was always moving constantly, coming off screens with a quick trigger.”

Meeks has that quick trigger. As a junior at Kentucky, he averaged 23.7 points en route to second-team All American honors.

But Meeks surprisingly slipped to the second round of the 2009 draft, was traded to the Sixers midway through his rookie year and then found himself inactive for the first six games of this season.

Then, an Andre Iguodala injury — combined with Evan Turner’s brutal struggles — led to a spot in the starting five. Coming into Thursday, Meeks was averaging 17.0 points and 4.3 three-pointers in three starts over the last week.