State Offers Top 2021 JUCO Point Guard Prospect
El Ellis is a native of Durham who almost certainly would have piqued the interest of NC State coach Kevin Keatts out of high school if he'd have had the grades to go directly to the Division I level.
The 6-foot-3 point guard clearly has the Wolfpack coach's attention now after a successful season of junior college ball.
Keatts became the latest high-major coach to offer a scholarship to the highly-rated 2021 prospect, who earned both his conference's Freshman and Player of the Year awards in his first season at Tallahassee Community College in Florida.
Blessed To Receive An Offer From North Carolina State University! #GoWolfpack #JUCOPRODUCT pic.twitter.com/rNicokBvGC
— 𝓔𝓵𝓑𝓞𝓞𝓖𝓘𝓔 (@elellis3) March 21, 2020
Ellis has also received offers from State's ACC rival Louisville, UConn, Nebraska, Ole Miss and Arizona State, among others.
The Wolfpack, however, could have the inside track because of its proximity to his home. State has had success in the past with transfers returning back to the Triangle, including Terry Henderson and current team member Thomas Allen.
Described by JUCO coach Zach Settembre as a three-level scorer with the potential to be an elite playmaker, Ellis averaged a team-leading 14.3 points, 4.4 assists and 3.9 rebounds per game for TCC this season while shooting 40.3 percent from three-point range.
"When El handles the ball, he has it on a string. He is lightning quick in transition and really shifty. I was blown away with how well he handles the ball, how good he was in traffic and his vision," Settembre told the Tallahassee Democrat. "El's a true point guard with a scorer's mentality."
Ellis scored 20 or more points seven times, including a high of 34, while helping the Eagles to a 27-6 record and a spot in the NJCAA national tournament that was canceled because of the coronavirus crisis.
Ellis' athletic ability comes naturally. His father Elbert Ellis Sr. was a wide receiver at Pittsburgh and an original member of the 1995 Carolina Panthers.
His academic progress was adversely affected by several transfers that saw him bounce around between several high schools, including Mount Zion Christian Academy and Durham's Quality Education Academy.
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