Michigan State University Athletics
Alvin Ellis III: An Effort And An Ethic
2/6/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
By Brock Lewandowski, MSU Athletic Communications
Sophomore guard Alvin Ellis III defines work as "doing whatever you need to do to achieve your goals," and he chases several while competing at Michigan State.
"I want to win a National Championship," said Ellis. "I want to do some personal stuff with my grades, like to be on the Dean's List. Big Ten Outrights, First Team All-Big Ten, all that stuff - I just need to keep progressing my game and see where that leads."
Long before his basketball aspirations kicked in, Ellis had a wider field of tastes.
"I was playing three sports - baseball, football and basketball," Ellis said. "I started off liking baseball more than any other sport, then it was football and I finally got to basketball, playing at older age levels just to get my feet wet.
"When I was in fifth grade, I decided I really wanted to play basketball after seeing LeBron James in high school and all the hype he was getting. That's what made me really want to play basketball. I just started getting in the gym more."
Ellis credits James and his father, Alvin, as two of his biggest basketball role models as he grew up in Matteson, Illinois, where he went on to attend Chicago De La Salle high school and play basketball with fellow Spartan, Gavin Schilling, during their junior season.
"We were close," said Ellis. "He was my teammate, so we had to be close. We had some good times at De La Salle High School in Chicago. We had a lot of good games that we played together. I was kind of hurting when he transferred on me. We had a good season. Then we ended up coming here together, so it's all good."
As students at Michigan State, the pair has roomed together since their freshman year.
"We're way closer now than we were then," Ellis said. "We're pretty much with each other every day instead of going home to our families. The team is the family out here."
The reunion of their friendship came as a surprise to Ellis, as Michigan State was not his first choice as an All-State athlete and recruit.
"I committed to Minnesota right before my senior year," said Ellis. "I liked the coaching staff - Tubby Smith and all the other coaches. Then, when he was released from Minnesota and went to Texas Tech, I had to see what my options were.
"I was really just going to the school because of the coaching staff. I knew he was going to Texas Tech, but I really didn't want to go that far ... I got a call from Coach Izzo and I loved the program and the coaching staff and wanted to come here.
"I really didn't know what to expect coming to Michigan State ... I've been having a great time since I've been here and just steady living it."
As the university has grown on him, the coaching staff and team has become a new home to Ellis as well.
"It's a great feeling knowing that your team is going to have your back when you need something," said Ellis. "They're never going to leave you out to dry. We're with each other basically 24 hours - that's what it feels like some days, especially with the breaks. It's really a brotherhood.
"[Coach Izzo and I] are steady and getting closer every day. We see each other and we're always talking about problems, the goods and the bads. He's like a mentor to all of us."
During his freshman season in 2013-14, Ellis appeared in 36 games including one start after he, his parents and Tom Izzo made the decision not to redshirt him. He scored a season-high 12 points against Michigan on Jan. 25, and dished out a season-high three assists in the second round of the NCAA Tournament against Delaware.
"Being in the tournament, that was a great feeling in my first year, traveling like that," said Ellis. "Winning the Big Ten Tournament, that was a great feeling, to be on the stage and cut that net down. We have bigger goals this year - to get to the Final Four, to win a National Championship, so hopefully we can achieve those."
As Ellis looks ahead to his goals as a Spartan and beyond, he credits his work ethic for his progress to this day.
"It is important to me," said Ellis. "It's important to the coaching staff. It's important to me to show them what that looks like, how I want to be and what I want the future to look like for this team and for myself."
Thinking back to a day when he would watch tapes of Michael Jordan with his father. He finds his drive coming from his family back home.
"Seeing them and knowing I want my own things in life, I have to work for it on my own," said Ellis.
However, he does not have to look far for their support.
"My whole family pretty much comes to every game they can make," Ellis said. "Since I'm from Illinois, it's about three hours, so it's really not that bad of a drive. They try to make a lot of the games."
With two-plus years of college ball ahead of him, Ellis strives to continue to work in hopes a path will reveal itself for his future beyond MSU.
"I believe work will definitely take me there. I work every day. We really can't take a day off. There are a million people in the world trying to do the same thing I'm doing, so I have to keep working."
