by Alex Schwartz

Duke, Georgetown, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Vanderbilt, and Wake Forest are six prestigious academic schools, and all of them are fantastic on the hardwood as well. Thus, when I player can list that half dozen as his finalists, you know he must be special. Ryan Kelly '09 of Ravenscroft (NC) certainly fits that label, as he excels both in the classroom and in basketball. The 6'9 power forward is widely regarded as one of the best players in the United States, but he still manages to take academics seriously and do quite well. Kelly's play earned him a spot in the Boost Mobile Elite 24 Classic at Rucker Park in Harlem, New York. Although Ryan struggled in the actual game, he played well in the scrimmage the previous day, and I spoke to him after his solid showing that afternoon.

NB: You recently named your six finalists. Is there any chance that you go [to a school] outside of those schools, or are those absolutely your final choices?
RK: I’d have to say at this point [that] those are my final schools. All of them are really good fits for me academically [and] basketball-wise. I’m setting up my official visits now. . . . I’m visiting Vanderbilt, Notre Dame, Georgetown, and Wake Forest officially, and obviously Duke and North Carolina are really close in proximity and I can get to them whenever I need to be [there].

NB: Do you plan on taking an official visit [at some] point to either of those?
RK: Right now, . . . I’m going to meet with [North Carolina Head] Coach [Roy] Williams as well as [Duke Head] “Coach K” [Mike Krzyzewski] when he gets back from China . . . and decide from there. Honestly they’re so close it doesn’t really have to be an official [visit]. I can drive 20 minutes away to either of them. . . . Paying for the plane is what the biggest deal [is].

NB: Is location an important factor in your decision?
RK: Obviously you can tell that there’s a few in my area, but that’s just how the interest [has] been, that’s how it worked out [with schools] that are good fits for me. I could go to any of those places and be happy [and] my parents will come and see me play. I don’t think that will be an issue.

NB: If tomorrow was . . . signing day who would you sign with if you had to pick a school?
RK: I wouldn’t tell you. [Laughs] . . . I wouldn’t know, I honestly wouldn’t know, I wouldn’t know. I don’t have any sort of order or list. I’m very objective, I know most kids aren’t, but I’m very objective.

NB: What do you see as the strongest point and the weakest point of your game?
RK: [My] strongest point probably is just understanding how to play and just . . . knowing how to do different things that some kids can’t do. I understand the game pretty well and with the other God given abilities I have, that helps me out a lot. [My] biggest weakness is probably my strength which attributes to a lot of deficits [in my game] like defensive rebounding . . . [and] quickness . . . . Strength will come as I grow older, and I’m lifting weights. It will come.

The fact that Ryan Kelly is so adept both with academics and with a basketball tells you a lot about him. He is an intelligent kid with a nice inside-outside game. It's evident that both school and basketball are important him, as all of his remaining college choices are great options for a player of his caliber both on and off the hardwood. There are not many people who stand out so well in academia and athletics. Ryan is so gifted in both areas that he just might be the best student-athlete in the country.

Note- photo is from http://scouthoops.scout.com/.