Kansas forward Perry Ellis.

— Kansas University junior forward Perry Ellis was named first-team All-Big 12 on Sunday by league coaches and picked up the same distinction Monday from the Associated Press. Here’s a look at Ellis, up close and personal. —

Cold, hard facts in the form of statistics make the case, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Perry Ellis is one standout college basketball player. 

More than that — much more important than that to those who know the 1,000-point scorer the best — Ellis is one, fine human being.

“He’s sweet, nice, conscientious — a rock,” Kansas University coach Bill Self said of the Jayhawks’ 6-foot-8, 225-pound junior forward from Wichita.

Kansas forward Perry Ellis (34) smiles as teammate Jamari Traylor, left, celebrates following Ellis' high-flying lob dunk during the second half, Saturday, Feb. 21, 2015 at Allen Fieldhouse.

Valedictorian in the Class of 2012 at Wichita Heights, Ellis is a person who believes he’s been blessed and thus likes to return the favor(s) tenfold.

For instance, on Jan. 29, he stopped by Free State High to speak with players on the Wichita Heights girls hoops team, which was competing in the Firebird Winter Classic in Lawrence. Needless to say, the Falcons players were happy to see and hear from one of their most famous recent graduates, many posing for pictures with Perry.

“He does a lot of stuff around the community. He was really excited about speaking to his high school (girls) team, which was really cool. He loves giving back,” said KU senior Christian Garrett, who worships with Ellis regularly at weekly Bible study at the home of Garrett’s parents in Lawrence.

The Journal-World recently decided to look into some of Ellis’ volunteer endeavors in an attempt to capture Perry’s essence, his spirit.

Ellis, a former “Teen Hero” in “Real Men, Real Heroes, Inc.” of Wichita, has played tour guide for youths in the program.

“The past two years we’ve been able to take a group of our boys to Lawrence to view Allen Fieldhouse. Each time, Perry met with them and talked with them about the importance of academics,” said Buddy Shannon, one of the founders of the organization.

Kansas junior forward Perry Ellis poses with a group of youths from Wichita in front of Allen Fieldhouse. Ellis, a former Teen

Ellis has also been a regular attendee of Real Men, Real Heroes annual recognition event.

“What he (Ellis) did (as a Teen Hero his senior year of high school) was go into elementary and middle schools and speak in assemblies and classrooms to students regarding topics like the importance of academic excellence, making good choices, how to deal with peer pressure, setting and accomplishing goals as well as bullying,” Shannon said.

“Some of the assemblies may have had as many as 500 students. As everyone knows, Perry is an introvert. If you want to get him to open up, put him in front of a bunch of kids. He’ll talk about the importance of being a good person and good student. Perry is quiet, (but) he cares enough about kids to share with them things that helped him become a successful student,” Shannon added.

Shannon has memorized some of Ellis’ responses to youths’ questions at assemblies.

“Somebody asked him, ‘If you have a big game the same week as a big test, which are you most concerned about?”’ Shannon related. “Perry said, ‘I’m always more concerned about a test or grades than a game.’

“Another instance he was asked why he didn’t dress the way a lot of kids dressed by sagging his pants. He said he believes that the first impression you make is most important and is what people will remember you by. He said he always wanted to try to make a good impression.”

After an assembly, Ellis “would always take time to talk to teachers, take pictures with teachers and kids. He never acted in any way that would make him appear to be arrogant. He was always gracious to the faculty that allowed him to talk to their kids,” Shannon said of the all-time No. 2 scorer in Wichita City League history.

Shannon, a manager at Wichita’s Tree Top Nursery and Landscaping, put Ellis to work during the summer months. The money Ellis made on the job went toward the purchase of his beloved Dodge Charger automobile.

“He was not given any special treatment,” Shannon said of Ellis’ work assignments. “He was never late. He was out in the sun working like everybody else, watering plants, moving plants, carrying bags of moss for customers. He never complained or asked for an easier job. He’s always been a hard worker.”

Shannon issued perhaps the highest compliment a person can give in concluding a discussion about Ellis.

“I’ve been involved in youth mentoring for over 25 years and I can honestly say that Perry Ellis is one of the finest young men I’ve ever had the privilege of working with,” Shannon said.

Wichita Heights basketball coach Joe Auer, who coached Ellis for four years — all state championship seasons — beamed with pride as he read a quote from Ellis given after a KU victory over Kansas State.

“I’m growing,” Ellis said after the Jan. 31 game. “I’m growing as a person, as a player, just learning as we go. I’m still learning.”

Earlier this season, Kansas junior forward Perry Ellis stopped by Free State High, in Lawrence, to speak with members of Wichita Heights' girls basketball team.

“How many young people say things like that?” Auer said. “Most are obsessed with being evaluated and being seen as the top performer. He’s humble and honest and open about his journey and need to improve as a human being and player.

“What makes Perry so special is he is incredibly honest, straight forward and real. He’s embraced the notion you’ve got to get better every day in every way. For me it’s refreshing to see a guy who embraces that approach to life rather than worry about how you compare to other players in the country. Just worry about getting better and there’s a plan for him. He believes it,” Auer added.

Auer — he speaks with Ellis on the phone about once a week — said it was no surprise last March when Ellis came to watch Heights play in the state tournament and speak to the team, which includes Perry’s brother, Cameron.

“He’s one of the most conscientious young men I’ve had the privilege to coach,” Auer said. “He’s a devout Christian. Christianity is a force in his life. One thing we talked about in our program and one thing he’s aspired to, is leave everything a little better than he found it. The way he does that is he tries to give back. He is a leader by example.

“He understands he’s been blessed and it’s not a random thing he’s in the position he is in. There’s a responsibility having all these gifts of talent. He gets that.”

Indeed, when asked his philosophy of life, Ellis, who likes to read scripture passages from folks who send them to him, said simply: “God is first. I always put God first. I kind of let that take control and pray about it and go from there and see what it is he wants me to do.”

Ellis was back in Wichita a couple summers ago visiting family and friends and decided to check in on Special Olympics basketball player Tony Parker, a 27-year-old from Bel Aire, whom Ellis had heard liked to shoot hoops in his driveway wearing Ellis’s KU jersey No. 34.

Perry knocked on Parker’s door and asked him to come out and shoot hoops.

“You can’t even imagine what that did for Tony,” Tony’s mom, Barb, told Tom Keegan of the Journal-World. “Tony doesn’t show a lot of emotion, but he just lit up. It really, really did make his day.”

Ellis’ parents, Will and Fonda work for the Wichita Children’s Home which annually admits up to 2,000 participants into its programs. The children range from infants to young adults. Some of the participants are runaways or have been abused or neglected or abandoned.

Fonda works on the business side; Will with a program that prepares the older participants to live on their own. Perry has volunteered at the center. In fact some of the volunteer work helped him attain status in high school as a member of the National Honor Society.

“He was determined he wanted that,” Fonda said of status as an honor society member, one requirement a certain amount of hours of community service. “He did yard work, raked leaves, picked up trash, cleaned out vans and washed vehicles. For two years in a row he helped with a fundraiser at Christmastime when they had to stand out in the cold and collect donations for the Children’s Home.”

“My parents have worked there so long it’s a part of me now,” Perry Ellis explained. “It’s always great to go there, see my dad working with the kids, always great,” he repeated. “I love to help out when I can.”

Josh Schepis, Ellis’ seventh and eighth grade coach at Wichita’s Brooks Middle School, remembers Perry as a quiet, well-behaved youngster.

“I don’t remember if he ever even got a demerit in his entire time there,” Schepis said.

Ellis — his teams compiled a 28-0 record at Brooks — showed no braggadocio despite the fact Sports Illustrated for Kids and some local TV stations did stories on Ellis at that time.

Kansas forward Perry Ellis (34) competes for a rebound with Iowa State forward Georges Niang (31) during the first half on Monday, Feb. 2, 2015 at Allen Fieldhouse.

“You never had to worry about Perry’s grades. You never had to worry about him,” Schepis said.

Ellis has made various trips to Brooks School the past several years.

“We implemented a 25-book campaign trying to boost our reading scores for our school and he came back and read to the kids,” Schepis said. “He came over twice this school year and hung out with the kids in P.E. (physical education). There was an Ice Bucket Challenge and he and some of our other Div. I players came back and helped us out. He did a five-minute tape for our movie production people, challenging (other schools) for a good cause. He’s always gracious and accommodating.

“We had a group come to Lawrence called our Avid group — Advancement Via Individual Determination. He said when they get to Lawrence give him a text and he’d make time for them. He’s good about getting back any time we need something.”

In perhaps the highest honor, “at Brooks Middle School, we have big ol’ posters of Perry palming a basketball in his KU uniform. On them, it says ‘Follow the Purple Rule (school code).’ Any kid who goes to Brooks knows Perry Ellis went to Brooks. He’s a role model for a lot of these kids,” Schepis said.

Ellis says he’s “honored” his image is on the posters.

“I went back up there this summer and saw them. That’s pretty cool. To think I went to school there and they did that … I thought it was awesome,” he said.

Last May, a group of nurses at Via Christi Saint Francis organized a Wichita East High School graduation party for cancer patient Lorenzo Caw. 

Ellis attended that party to surprise Caw, a person he’d never met.

“It was an awesome experience,” Ellis said. “I didn’t know him (Caw) prior. I went there and got to speak with him. It made him real happy. Some little things you do like that change things (for the better in the world),” Ellis added.

Daniel Fowler, who heads Via Christi Hospital St. Francis’ Cancer Wellness Program, contacted Fonda Ellis who put Fowler in touch with her son.

“Perry showed up and surprised the heck out of that kid. He was speechless for a second,” Fowler said.

Caw has completed his chemo treatments and has started taking classes at Emporia State University.

“Perry is well-educated, well spoken, is probably more mature than most people in his position at his age,” Fowler said. “That he would go out of his way to do that for somebody he had never met shows a lot of character.

“He is well known in Wichita for being a good person. I’ve never heard anything bad about him, even from people (some Wichita State fans) that hate KU … they have nothing but good things to say about him as a person. You can see it on the court. He’s always poised. He’s not a dirty player. He’s just a clean, honest guy,” Fowler added.

Fowler also took Ellis to meet some other cancer patients.

He was humble. He had conversations with patients like he’d known them for years,” Fowler said. “It was a real honor to work with someone like Perry.”

Ellis in December of 2013 was nominated for the Allstate Good Works team. The award “recognizes a select group of college basketball student-athletes who have made significant contributions to the greater good of their communities through volunteerism and civic service. The Good Works Team honors players who represent the sport’s finest in the areas of leadership and charitable achievements amongst their peers. The student-athletes nominated for this prestigious award embody the true spirit of teamwork and giving back.”

Teammate Christian Garrett said there isn’t a more deserving player in the country.

“Perry is a great person. I’d say he has God-given ability to be an upright person. He has a good heart,” Garrett said. “It’s been cool for me to be a friend of his. He’s naturally a good dude. He’s been raised right, but some people naturally are just that way. 

Kansas forward Perry Ellis fights for a rebound with Kansas State forward Nino Williams (11) during the second half on Saturday, Jan. 31, 2015 at Allen Fieldhouse.

“He thinks and notices stuff. He’s funny,” Garrett added of Ellis, who in his spare time loves playing video games with younger brothers Cameron and Brae, especially “Call of Duty.” He also has an older sister, Savannah, who taught him a lot about college life and being a college athlete, being a former Memphis Tiger basketball player.

“Everyone on our team loves him. He has a lot of good things to say. One day when he starts getting that voice going more, it’s going to be really cool. Perry has a lot more to say than you would think. That’s what the world should know about him.”

Ellis figures to have his say in coming years. After what he hopes is a long career as a pro basketball player, he hopes to “stay involved in sports, whether it’s coaching or helping kids I want to be around sports.”

Or perhaps enter the ministry like former KU forward Wayne Simien of Leavenworth?

“I heard somebody say they see me doing that,” Ellis said with a smile. “You never know. Go with the flow and see what happens.”

Asked to provide the final words for this story, Ellis was asked about the growing perception he’s a “perfect young man.”

“Perfect kid? I’d say nowhere close,” Ellis said. “I’m just trying to become a better person each day. I’m definitely not perfect.”