Providence basketball commit Ryan Mela of Natick challenged himself at every opportunity
STOUGHTON - Ryan Mela bent over to tighten his neon green and pink basketball shoes. His back pressed against the folding chair in a Newman School grey jersey.
A hanging mesh divider behind him separated Court 3 at the Dana Barros Basketball Club from the other two competition courts in the Zero Gravity Prep Classic the first weekend of December. The decor resembles courts and facilities all over the country where top basketball prospects gather.
These hangars are interchangeable, a far cry from the intimate, rowdy confines of the Bay State Conference gyms Mela spent the first three years of his high school career enthralling.
"It was a little different. I felt a little weird," said Mela, the small forward from Natick and a former Redhawks standout. "Now that I've adjusted to it and gone through AAU all summer, I got used to it."
A new path in Boston
Mela left Natick after his junior year to play at the Newman School – a NEPSAC boarding school in Boston. He reclassified to repeat his junior season, shifting from the Class of 2023 to '24.
It allowed another summer of AAU run with the Middlesex Magic and paved his path to Providence. Mela signed with the Big East program during the early period in November after committing to the Friars in August.
"(Transferring) was super hard. I took a long time with me and my parents to go over it. It was obviously tough leaving all of my hometown friends, everyone I grew up with for my senior year," Mela said. "It was definitely a tough choice, but I think I made the right choice in the end."
It wasn't just one choice, but a series of decisions, each motivated by the desire to compete against and with the best.
Michael Crotty first encountered Mela as an opponent. His Middlesex Magic team faced Mela's previous program during the COVID-19 pandemic in New Hampshire. Magic assistant Alex Giangregorio coached at Natick previously and warned Crotty.
"He was fantastic. He was very difficult to stop," Crotty said. "I was like, ‘Man I think we could help this kid.’"
Making Magic happen
During Mela's junior season with the Redhawks, he realized he needed to make a change. The Middlesex Magic were set to enter the Under Armour Association, a circuit of elite club hoops programs, and Mela signed up before the April 2022 open recruiting period.
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The pond's size increased with the number of courts. No longer was he clearly the best player on the team and in the league. He suited up alongside Power 5 commits in J.P Estrella (Tennessee) and Aidan Cammann (Stanford) on a team with eight future Division I players.
"Ryan was good. He was really good in moments, but he was mundane in some moments," Crotty said.
During his initial stretch with the Middlesex Magic, Mela caught Newman coach Jackson Johnson's attention. The former Under Armour employee monitored the circuit on the lookout for potential recruits.
"It's my job to know all of the best kids in the area. I thought he was one of the best players on their 17U team at the time, but he was only getting Patriot League offers," Johnson said. "His best performances were high major performances. They just weren't frequent."
Johnson believed in Mela's potential if he worked on his habits and body. Meeting him and his family bolstered his faith.
"We don't sacrifice character for talent. Ryan is one of the best kids I've ever been around. He's a genuine, unbelievable soul," Johnson said. "He doesn't have a bad bone in his body."
Mela honed every aspect of his game playing for Newman and the Magic. He added a 3-point shot to his lethal rim attack. His communication and leadership matured.
"There's been an evolution to an extremely taented, stronger, more vocal, winning player," said Crotty, a former Belmont High, Phillips Exeter Academy and Williams College standout before briefly playing professionally overseas. "Ryan can get 30 points any day of the week. Ryan could lead Under Armour in scoring, there's not a doubt in my mind. He's one of the most talented guys in the whole Under Armour Association, but he cared about winning."
Middlesex went 30-5 with Mela and won two championships. He was the finals MVP of their latest run and led the team in scoring.
"He’s a wonderful person, sweetheart of a kid. He’s got the killer instinct, though. He can be a little nasty when he plays. But as a person he’s not the guy you shout at. I don’t really want to yell at him, he’s so nice," Crotty said.
Crotty didn't yell their whole first year together. Then, as Mela evolved, the Magic coaches realized they could demand more of him. Crotty "got into him" twice during their run to the title, and Mela responded immediately.
"He’s about the right stuff. He works hard, you earn your confidence, but he’s super humble," Crotty said. "I’ve been so grateful I had the chance to coach him. He’s done a lot to help us elevate our program. Ryan is as talented a high school player as I’ve had a chance to be around."
Big-time programs took notice
Playing around so much talent and achieving success, Mela attracted even more collegiate attention. Providence assistant Dennis Felton visited Newman's gym when he still worked at George Mason. He was watching point guard Luka Toews, who also played for the Middlesex Magic and eventually signed with Boston College, but couldn't help noticing Mela.
"Every time I watched him play, whether it was for his high school team or his AAU team, I noticed he was productive. He was always scoring or making plays," Felton said. "He just didn't pass the look test, so I didn't take him real seriously."
Then Providence hired George Mason coach Kim English in April, and he brought Felton with him to the Big East. They didn't recruit Mela initially, but he forced their attention at July's UAA championships in Atlanta. Felton texted the rest of the staff, "I'm having a hard time ignoring this kid."
He unleashed a text rant outlining the reasons: Mela was productive, efficient, and making winning plays in the context of teamwork on a championship team. The rest of the staff watched his subsequent games, and they concluded he could fit their style and culture.
"As I got to know him and know he was understated, unentitled, that was a characteristic that turned us on to him," Felton said. "You don't find anything out about Ryan quickly. He's not that talkative. Now that I've followed him more, I can see that he's a killer competitively. He does it in an understated way, and I love it. He doesn't have to bring all of the theatrics, but he's going for the jugular all of the time."
The 6-foot-6, 200-pound small forward is a three-star prospect ranked eighth in the state. 247sports.com ranks him as the No. 45 small forward in the country.
"He sees the game, has a great feel, great instincts. Another characteristic he brings is his versatility. He's naturally strong and physical, and he's very skilled," Felton said. "We play the modern game at Providence. A big part of that is being positionless, so he's perfect for us. He can play basically any position. He's skilled enough, and he's big enough and strong enough. He's versatile enough to plug into different holes at different moments."
The Friars offered a scolarship in July. Despite holding 13 others, that was the only one Mela needed. He grew up watching Providence basketball and wanted a school close to home with elite basketball and strong academics. His commitment materialized a few weeks later after a visit.
"It didn’t sink in for a while," Mela said. "Once I committed, I was like, 'Wow it really happened.'"
Fired up to be a Friar
His quest for sharper iron led to one of the nation's most challenging conferences. USA Today's metrics ranks the Big East as the third best league in the country, while the NCAA's NET ranking slots it fourth.
"It's one of the best leagues in the country, and it's right where he belongs," Crotty said. "I talk to high-major coaches about our upcoming guys in the '25 class, and they say, 'I'm happy for Ryan. I'm glad we're not in the Big East.'"
Before Mela gets there, though he needs to contend with one of the nations' most challenging schedules in the nation in the New England Basketball League. The New England Recruiting Report pegged Newman as the No. 5 prep team in the country. The Cardinals aspire to win the National Prep Championship in March.
"We're shooting for the stars," Mela said.
He's never aimed anywhere else.
Contact Kyle Grabowski at kgrabowski@gannett.com. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @kylegrbwsk.
This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: Providence basketball commit Ryan Mela 'about the right stuff'
