Oregon Ducks transfer guard Deja Kelly named to Nancy Lieberman preseason watchlist

After spending four (highly productive) years with the North Carolina Tar Heels, guard Deja Kelly entered the transfer portal and later committed to head coach Kelly Graves and the Oregon Ducks. The talented transfer was a massive pickup for Graves and is set to make waves with the Ducks as they enter the Big Ten together.

For a third consecutive year, Kelly was named to the preseason watchlist for the Nancy Lieberman Point Guard of the Year Award, an incredible nod of recognition for the fourth-year guard.

Iowa's Caitlin Clark won the award the past three seasons, one of just three players to win the award over three consecutive years. The other two? None other than Sue Bird and Oregon's own, Sabrina Ionescu.

While Kelly has yet to win the award throughout her collegiate career, being named to the preseason watchlist is an impressive honor, much less accomplishing that status three times in three years.

Over her first four years of college basketball, Kelly averaged 15.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 1.2 steals per game. She became a starter for the Tar Heels as a freshman during the 2020-21 season and started in 119 of her 121 games for UNC.

Before committing to the Tar Heels, Kelly was close to heading to Oregon straight out of high school but the Ducks already had a huge incoming class of recruits in 2020.

"She is a prolific scorer and such a unique talent who elevates everyone around her," said Graves "She is a really skilled ball-handler who can create her own shot and create for teammates, but she can also play off the ball and knock down the three while also playing great perimeter defense."   

Kelly is set to lead the Ducks through the Big Ten and hopefully make an even bigger name for herself, both at Oregon and on the national level.

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