After 13 seasons, Tamecka Dixon has decided to hang up her WNBA shoes as she announced her retirement from the league on Thursday. The announcement caps a brilliant career for one of the league's original players, who won two WNBA championships and was named to three WNBA All-Star teams in her career.

Dixon entered 2009 as one of only four players – along with Lisa Leslie, Vickie Johnson and Tina Thompson - that had played in the league since its inception in 1997. She now joins Leslie and Johnson in retirement.

WNBA.com's Brian Martin had a chance to speak with Dixon from Italy, where she is currently playing for GMA Napoli and leads the Italian League in scoring at 18.3 points per game. Dixon discusses her decision to end her WNBA career, some of her favorite memories from the past 13 seasons and what she plans to do next.

WNBA.com: What made you decide that now was the right time to hang 'em up?

Dixon: I actually thought about it for a while. After the Houston team disbanded is when I first started to think retirement, but I still felt I had some game left in me and I wanted to go out on my terms. I just feel like now is the right time to do it.

WNBA.com: Do you still plan to play overseas or is this the end of your playing career altogether?

Dixon: I'm probably going to play overseas for another year or two. I'm over here now so maybe another year or two after this.

WNBA.com: What do you plan to do next; what is your plan for life after basketball?

Dixon: I'm going to back to school as of now, getting my masters in corporate finance from the University of Phoenix. So I'm doing that and I also started a business a few years back with my father and my personal trainer, training kids, so I'd like to spend a little more time in that area, really getting our business off the ground and growing it.

WNBA.com: What brought you to that field? Was it a natural progression for you?

Dixon: I think so. I've always worked with kids and I just enjoy giving back to the game as much as I can. It's a joy to see the kids growing up and learning the fundamentals of the game and you just never really know where they're going to take it. It's always been an exciting thing for me.

WNBA.com: Take me down memory lane for a minute. What are some of the moments that stand out most in your career?

Dixon: Obviously winning the two championships in LA has to be on top of my list. Some of the other things are being drafted by the Sparks, then all of the teammates I've had and the friendships and bonds that I've build over the years with a lot of the players. Definitely my years in LA have been really, really memorable ones for me, but also this last year in Indiana was really a good one for me.

WNBA.com: What did you like most about this year that you had? You mentioned going out on your own terms. Do you feel that this last year fulfilled that and that you were able to do what you wanted to?

Dixon: Definitely. We felt a little short of our ultimate goal, which was to win another championship, but we had a historical season in Indiana with the crowds that came out and supported us, just the runs that we went on, the winning streaks during the season. Every game that we played just built it up a little bit more. We were a really tight group and that's really what was special about that group.

WNBA.com: What will you miss most about playing in the WNBA?

Dixon: I definitely think the friendships. You know you play other teams and you form bonds and friendships with other players and it's nice to go from city to city and be able to catch up with old friends. I'm definitely going to miss that, and just the competitiveness. I am a competitive person by nature so I'm definitely going to have to find something to quench my competitive thirst because basketball was always it for me.

WNBA.com: What won't you miss?

Dixon: After doing it for 13 years, I'm definitely not going to miss the travel. Just being in one city one night and another city the next night, it became repetitive and redundant, but it also was a blessing. But after doing this for so long it did get a little old for me.

WNBA.com: What are you looking forward to most about retirement?

Dixon: I'm actually really looking forward to it. I feel like I gave the game everything I had and I gave the league everything I had and I tried to show that every night. I'm looking forward to the next stage of my life. I'm just looking forward to spending a little bit more time with my family and friends at home. I've missed so many of my family's functions – weddings, family reunions and things like that – and now I'll be able to be a part of them, so I'm looking forward to this next stage.

WNBA.com: Last year you were one of four original WNBA players remaining in the league and now three of you have retired. What was it about that group of players that came into the league and carried the league through its first 13 years?

Dixon: It was a great group. When you look at the last couple that have retired with Lisa, I was able to spend nine years with her in L.A.; Vickie Johnson, I've played overseas on teams with her and we've battled year in and year out in the league so I know her very well; and Tina was my teammate in Houston. It was a special group. I've been able to be around those girls for my entire career and they've all had great careers in their own right. I'm blessed to be a part of a group like that.