Dukes pick up City League big man Ellis
James Ellis had a thank you list, and it was long. It started with Duquesne basketball coach Keith Dambrot, and then he rattled off athletic director Dave Harper, Duquesne administrators and even two women in the admissions office.
“I realize I’m getting the chance to go to college and eventually do something I love — play basketball,” said Ellis. “I’m just thankful to so many people at Duquesne. Just for the opportunity.”
Duquesne might have one large diamond in the rough.
Ellis is a 6-foot-11 senior center at Westinghouse High School in the City League, a player with a 7-6 wing span, a teenager oozing with potential. He has Division I basketball measurables, but wasn’t recruited much. Even though he was good enough to make the Post-Gazette Fabulous 5 and be the City League Player of the Year, he still might be the biggest sleeper in Western Pennsylvania in years.
Because of academic difficulties, Ellis was set to attend Allegany, a junior college in Maryland. Then Dambrot saw Ellis play in a game in which he had 20 points and 20 rebounds. Dambrot liked him so much, he started recruiting him and started working on a possible plan that would bring him to Duquesne as a player for the future.
The plan was finalized Tuesday. Ellis signed with Duquesne.
Ellis is not expected to meet NCAA requirements to be eligible as a freshman. He will most likely be a nonqualifier, will not be on an athletic scholarship for a year and will not be allowed to play in games or practice next season. But he will be eligible to play in the 2019-20 season. Dambrot said Tuesday he believes Ellis could be a “high level” player someday.
Ellis’ story is one of potential and of a turnaround. Eugene Wilson, Westinghouse’s coach the past two seasons, will tell you Ellis changed dramatically in his final two years of high school — as a student and person.
“Unfortunately in life, you can’t give as many people second chances, because what happens is people say all you care about is winning,” said Dambrot. “But we’re giving James a chance to show that he can do the work academically. This is a good school for him.”
Ellis will be the first City League player at Duquesne since Schenley’s Jack Higgins in 2004-06. He will be the first Westinghouse player at Duquesne since the legendary Chuck Cooper in 1947-50. Cooper was an All-American and the first black player drafted into the NBA.
“I think we have an obligation to the city of Pittsburgh to look hard at Pittsburgh kids,” said Dambrot. “I feel like this guy is going to make it.”
Ellis said: “I shouldn’t logically be going Division I based on my academics. But I’ve changed a lot and I love the fact that coach Dambrot never gave up on me and said he was willing to take the extra step to get me here. I realize I’m getting a second chance and I’m so thankful.”
Ellis and Wilson said Kent State and Akron were interested early in the season, but backed off.
“I think coach Dambrot, his staff and the Duquesne people were able to see the progression he made in two years with his basketball ability and off the court,” said Wilson, who became Baldwin High School’s coach last month. “The part of him being afforded a chance at Duquesne shows the major strides he has made, both from a maturation standpoint, the way he carries himself, and the way he now prioritizes the right things in his life.”
Ellis showers praise on Wilson for helping turn him around. Wilson came to Westinghouse in 2016 from Wilkinsburg.
“When I was a sophomore, I felt like I wasn’t meant to be a basketball player,” said Ellis. “I was just tall. Coach Gene came along and showed me what I should be doing. He basically broke me down, killed all my pride and then built me back up and showed me the right road. I’m a 100 percent different person. I was nowhere near as talented as I am now, but I’m different in a lot of ways.”
As a player, Ellis’ length is hard to ignore, but he has good post moves, a nice touch from the outside and is an excellent free-throw shooter. He averaged close to a triple double this season with 21 points, 12 rebounds and 7 blocks per game.
Westinghouse won at New Castle the first weekend of the season and New Castle coach Ralph Blundo commented how Division I schools were missing the boat on Ellis. Allderdice coach Buddy Valinsky, whose team beat Westinghouse three times, said, “I think — 100 percent — he can be a factor at Duquesne. He’s a team player and he can play above the square. One year in the weight room will help, too.”