Perry Ellis On Kentucky's Radar

Right now it's about ninety-seven degrees in Kansas. Perry Ellis and his father, Will, have just come back from Virginia. They were there for the NBPA Top 100 Camp. Perry played very well, as usualy, even though it was a camp where the tempo was set by the guards. He is lying down with ice packs on his knees and awaiting dinner. Being that I have struck up an excellent relationship with Perry's mom, Fonda; I figured I would chat with her about his recruitment and how involved Kentucky is. She is very vocal in his recruitment and loves what she does. One thing you must commend her and her husband, Will, is on their jobs. They are dedicated to a non profit organization that helps children who have been abandoned, abused, runaway or are homeless. That is devotion right there and already you can grasp what the Ellis family is like. Perry's sister, Savannah, plays hoops for Memphis. That is how the former Tigers' staff first got to know of Perry, however, this story is about the Wildcats. "We've known Coach Robic, Orlando and Cal since Perry was in the 7th going to 8th grade," said Fonda Ellis. "They have been following Perry for several years now. Perry was first offered by Coach Cal when he was at Memphis when Perry was a freshman at Wichita Heights.  When Cal left Memphis, he made it known to Perry that the offer was good at Kentucky too." Assistant Coach Orlando Antigua has been the main contact with the Ellis family. Fonda went on to say, "he went to one of Perry's games at the Dodge City TOC in January 2010.  Then Coach Cal, Orlando and Tony Delk came to Wichita April 19th for an open gym." One of the most important pieces of information came recently on June 15th, the first day coaches could make contact with players from the class of 2012. "Coach Cal was the first head coach to call Perry. I think it was around 7am." Perry has visited most of the other schools who have offered. He has not had a chance to get out to Stanford yet. Stanford, who has yet to offer, is very close. He has not visited Wake Forest either, who just offered on Saturday night. Interestingly enough, Perry and his family have visited Kentucky before, unofficially. "I surprised Perry last summer when we were driving from Memphis to Ohio for the Lebron James Skills Academy", said Fonda. "I turned to stop in Lexington and wanted to show him the campus. Coach Orlando was there and greeted us.  We had a great visit.  We talked to DeMarus Cousins briefly too." For anyone who says Perry Ellis is a lock to Kansas because it is his hometown is wrong. Looking at some of what Fonda Ellis says just explains how wide open they are. Kentucky is certainly a possibility, though. Outside of Kansas, Kentucky and Memphis, schools like Oklahoma, Stanford, Texas A&M, Kansas State, Missouri, Wichita State, Wake Forest and many more are pursuing the big power forward who has a 4.0 GPA. Brandon Knight had a 4.3 GPA in high school. Could UK get another all around star? Lastly, if basketball doesn't work out for Perry, he has struck up a second activity that he loves. "Chess", said Fonda. "He likes to play chess and is good at it.  His High School Coach Joe Auer taught him and they would have chess matches during the school lunch hour. I think that Perry is now two games ahead of Coach Auer. Perry hates to lose he wants to win every game he plays very competitive." If Perry is just as good as he is at chess, any school would be lucky to have his services. Follow Alex Kline on Twitter