After six years away from home — spending time on both the East and West Coasts — graduate student Zane Meeks has finally returned to his native state of Kansas, ready to make his mark at Wichita State men’s basketball. 

Meeks grew up in the Kansas City area playing for Shawnee Mission East High School, before moving out east to play his final year of high school in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire.

He spent most of his college basketball career on the West Coast, playing his freshman and sophomore years for the University of Nevada, then going to the University of San Francisco and Arizona State University for the past three seasons. He said returning home for his final year of eligibility was a no-brainer.

“I always knew I wanted to come back closer to home,” Meeks said. “And so when the opportunity arose, and with as good a coach as (Paul) Mills is, I (would have been) pretty crazy to turn it down.” 

When he’s not on the court, Meeks enjoys rooting for the Kansas City Chiefs.

“I’m like a huge Chiefs fan,” Meeks said. “I grew up a season ticket holder, and I was a fan when they were bad, so it’s really fun that they’re so good now.”

Meeks is also a fan of cryptocurrency, a form of digital currency that is not reliant on a centralized authority like a bank or government.

“I’ve been in it for a while,” Meeks said. “I would have had a computer science degree at the end of San Francisco … I was in San Francisco at the heart of it. I tracked it. I like computers and so I think it’s just been a great combination … and, you know, I honestly believe in its future and power and I think there’s enough advantages.”

Meeks, who is dealing with an injury that may prevent him from playing early this season, said he’s “looking forward to helping the Shockers win this year.” 

Harlond Beverly, one of his teammates, described Meeks as “very positive and knowledgeable.”

“He’s really good to be around,” Beverly said. “He’s seen a lot of basketball, so that’s always a plus.” 

Meeks has put some thought into his off-the-court future plans.

“I think we’ll see where basketball takes me,” he said. “I do realize at some point the ball is going to stop bouncing for me, maybe sooner than some others, but I mean, business in general. I’ve thought about law school. We’ll see where it takes me.”