In this article, Lisa Leslie and Malika Andrews Bring NBA All Star Weekend Energy to Compton, MyntJ recaps and All-Star weekend celebration of access, representation and belief at her home of Compton! Felicia Enriquez, aka Mynt J, is the host of the podcast BlackLove and Basketball – Compton Edition. She is a Clippers fan, an NBA credentialed creator representing thePeachBasket.
COMPTON, CA —February 14, 2026
Before the lights, cameras, and All-Star festivities took over the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, two powerful women made a different kind of stop first.
They came to Compton.
Before the league celebrated its brightest stars, Lisa Leslie and Malika Andrews surprised a group of high school girls basketball players from Compton and Inglewood, reminding them that All-Star moments do not only belong inside arenas.
Sometimes they happen in your own backyard.
On a weekend when the basketball world celebrates its biggest names, these young women did not just watch from a distance. They lived their own version of it. Shoe Palace shut down its Compton location for a private experience presented by Nike, offering brunch, custom Air Force 1s, and space intentionally created just for them.
It was not just about sneakers.
It was about access.
It was about visibility.
It was about being intentionally poured into before the national spotlight shifted to Inglewood.
All-Star Weekend: An Experience, Not Just an Event
Under-resourced communities do not always get moments like this. Not because the talent is not there, but because the luxury of being celebrated without struggle attached to it is not always built into the equation.
These young athletes walked into a space curated for them. They were served brunch. They decorated their own shoes. They left with fresh Air Force 1s. They were treated like stars before ever stepping onto a professional stage.
And what made the day powerful was not just who was invited.
It was who was included.
The coaches.
The parents.
The support systems.
The people who drive to practice, fundraise, show up, sacrifice, and pour into these girls quietly were able to sit down and experience being served. Not scrambling. Not organizing. Not coordinating. Just present.
That matters in a community that is used to giving more than it receives.
When the Legend Walked In
When Lisa Leslie entered the room, there was a pause. Recognition.
“I’m so happy and proud to be from Compton.”
She spoke about walking to school, about being grounded, about how being from Compton shaped her long before championships shaped her résumé.
“Where I’m from is what keeps me grounded. What I did, that is like a job, but that is not who I am.”
She talked about shopping at the Compton Swap Meet. About getting school clothes there. About someone once asking her how it felt to be poor, and how she never felt poor at all.
Because she had love.
She had family.
She had community.
That humility carried weight.
Success did not distance her from her roots. It strengthened them.
All pictures courtesy of MyntJ
The Mountaintop Looks Different for Everyone
Malika Andrews did not just host the conversation. She framed it.
“When Lisa Leslie walked in and to see that look of recognition… that’s what this event is all about.”
She understood what it meant for the girls to see someone who started where they started and reached the highest level of the sport.
But she also expanded the definition of success.
“I’m from Oakland, California… sort of the cousin to the north of Compton and Inglewood.”
That connection mattered. It was not surface level. It was cultural.
She encouraged the girls not to rush their path.
“I wish that I was a little bit more patient in my journey,” Andrews told them. “When you’re constantly looking to the left and to the right to find who knows exactly what they’re doing, that’s where sometimes you forget to have the joy in the journey.”
That line felt like permission.
Permission not to have it all figured out.
Permission to grow at your own pace.
Permission to trust that your lane will reveal itself.
Lisa represented dominance on the court.
Malika represented ownership of the narrative.
Both represented power.
Write It Down. Do the Work.
If there was one message Lisa insisted they leave with, it was this.
“From the ninth grade, I started writing down my goals.”
Short term. Long term. Academic. Athletic.
“If you guys don’t remember anything from today, remember this part.”
She spoke about sacrifice without glamorizing it.
“It’s about sacrifice. Hard work, dedication, sacrifice.”
Then she simplified it.
“Consistency. Whatever you put time and effort into, that is what you’re going to be good at.”
No shortcuts. No mystery. Just work.
An All-Star Moment at Home
With All-Star Weekend setting the tone across the basketball world, this event felt intentional. Before the spotlight hit the Intuit Dome, the spotlight hit Compton.
These girls were not watching stars from afar.
They were sitting across from them.
Exposure creates imagination.
Access creates confidence.
Representation creates belief.
And Lisa Leslie left them with one final reminder.
“If I’m only the one who believed in you today, then I’ve done my job.”
On a weekend built around elite talent, the most impactful moment may have happened before tipoff.
Sometimes the real All-Star experience is not the game.
It is the reminder that you belong in it.