Perry Ellis
Wichita Heights High School
Impact Statement
Ellis excelled in both the classroom and on the court while at Wichita Heights High School and the University of Kansas.
Biography
The 6-foot-8, 225-pound post player led Wichita Heights to four 6A state championships and became the first player to be named All-State four times by The Wichita Eagle. Ellis scored 2,231 career points, breaking a Wichita City League record that had stood since 1981, and had 987 career rebounds as he led the Falcons (23-2) on a state-record 62-game winning streak that was set this season. Ellis averaged 25.8 points, 9.4 rebounds, 1.6 assists, 1.0 blocks and 1.0 steals as a senior and shot 67 percent from the field, including 43 percent from three-point range, and 78 percent from the free-throw line, hitting 195 free throws.
The McDonald’s All-American had 29 points and seven rebounds in the Falcons’ 67-60 title-game victory over Overland Park Blue Valley Northwest High. Named to the All-USA Today Second Team, Ellis, the Gatorade Kansas Player of the Year, is the first player in the award program’s 27-year history to be a four-time state Player of the Year selection.
Also an outstanding student, Ellis ranks No. 1 in his class with a 4.0 grade-point average, and serves as secretary of his school’s National Honor Society chapter. The University of Kansas recruit has volunteered locally on behalf of the Wichita Children’s Home, with the Real Men, Real Heroes Teen Hero program, as part of youth literacy-outreach initiatives and as a motivational speaker to youth athletes, addressing the importance of education.
Ellis played for the Kansas Jayhawks all four years earning four trips to the NCAA Championships. In addition, the Jayhawks made a trip to the Elite Eight as a senior. Off the court, Ellis was the Big 12 Scholar Athlete of the Year both his junior and senior years.
After college, Ellis has played the past few years in the NBA’s G-League overseas. He’s played for Turkey, Italy, Germany and Australia. In July of 2019, Ellis was injured during a summer tournament and required surgery. He is now back at Kansas rehabbing and completing his degree. He was named the video coordinator for the 2019-2020 season.
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