East Aurora's Boatright has 'big-time' dreams

East Aurora’s Ryan Boatright can remember watching "He Got Game" growing up and fantasizing what it would be like to be Jesus Shuttlesworth, a recruit every college sought.

Unfortunately, Boatright never had that opportunity. Just after finishing eighth grade, Boatright jumped at his first college offer and committed to the University of Southern California and its coach Tim Floyd in the summer of 2007.

Like that, he was off the board.

At least, until now.

With the recent resignation of Floyd from USC, Boatright has decided to re-open his recruitment, and this time he plans on living out his Jesus Shuttlesworth fantasy.

“Now I get to be a big-time recruit,” said Boatright, a 5-foot-11 point guard. “It’s fun.”

He’s already on his way as DePaul, Florida State, Kansas State and Miami have shown interest. Illinois told him it wanted to be sure he was officially de-committed before doing anything.

East Aurora coach Wendell Jeffries has also been contacted by Marquette, and he knows there will be plenty more coming.

“I’m a little afraid of what it’s going to be like this year — not just for me, but for him,” Jeffries said. “We already had a media circus when he committed because everyone wanted to see him play. We didn’t have college coaches coming then. Now, I’m afraid of how many phone calls and letters we’ll be getting. I hope it’s not a distraction.”

Among his Class of 2011 in-state peers, Boatright had one of the more productive sophomore seasons. He averaged a team-leading 17.5 points and scored a career-high 44 points against Larkin.

City/Suburban Hoops Report’s Joe Henricksen has Boatright ranked No. 11 in the class. Among point guards, he’s behind Tracy Abrams, Chasson Randle and George Marshall.

“There’s no question he’s a high-major talent,” Henricksen said. “He’s an explosive scorer. He’s a blur up and down the floor. He’s got confidence. He’s got a swagger to him. He’s really improved his shooting since his freshman year.”

At the Morris Shootout on Wednesday, Boatright displayed his diverse talent. It began in the layup line as he sprung time after time above the rim and threw down dunks one wouldn’t expect from someone under 6-foot.

“My athleticism has gotten a lot better,” Boatright said. “I’ve always been able to dunk, but not like that. I started doing that after the high school season in March. It’s fun.”

Boatright continued to put on a show when play began against York in the opening round of the tournament. Early on, he tried to get his teammates involved as he drove past defenders and dropped off passes. But those passes were mishandled by his teammates and York built a double-digit lead.

So Boatright began taking the situation into his own hands. He flew past defenders and scored inside. He pulled up from deep and knocked down jumpers.

The Tomcats eventually lost to York, but it couldn’t be blamed on Boatright. He finished with 32 points, grabbed five rebounds and had three steals.

“His game has really progressed,” Jeffries said. “He has to get more consistent with his three-point shot. Right now, no one can stop him from getting to the basket. If he can get more consistent, he’ll be unstoppable.”

In July, he hopes to put it all together while playing for the Derrick Rose All-Stars.

“It’ll be a big July for him,” Henricksen said. “I think he was off a lot of people’s radars because of his early commitment. You’re kind of the forgotten guy. He’ll be a really closely evaluated player among college coaches because the fact he is going to be available.”