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Drey Ricks
Western Michigan University
PositionPoint Guard
Personal information
Born (1986-09-12) September 12, 1986 (age 38)
Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Career information
CollegeWestern Michigan University
Number12
Career highlights and awards
  • Ranked #1 best ball handler in the state of Michigan by Prep Spotlight Magazine (2005)
  • Ranked 3rd best point guard in the state on Michigan in the class of (2005)
  • Ricks was selected to play in the Michigan high school All-Star Game(2005) *Ricks was named all-state (2005)
  • Ricks received D1 mid-major player of the week
  • Ricks hold the scoring record for most points scored under 3 minutes on ESPN 2 national TV game vs Marist

Andre "Drey" Ricks (born September 12, 1986)[1] is a former NCAA Division I basketball player for Western Michigan University, and the founder of Rawimpact Clothing Brand & Rawimpact Basketball Training Academy.

Early life

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Drey Ricks was born in Detroit, Michigan. Ricks is from a boxing family; Which consist of his uncle world champion Jimmy (Ringmaster) Paul, uncle, seven-time World Champion Thomas "Hitman" Hearns,[2] and father Danny "MadDog" Paul. Ricks spent much of his adolescence in the legendary Kronk Boxing Gym,[3] but was forbidden by his family not to become a boxer.[4] Ricks played a year and a half of basketball at Detroit Pershing High School, earning a name for himself as "The Seatbelt" and known as one of the most feared on the ball defenders in the state. In March 2001, he made a guest appearance playing against the AND1 Streetball Live Tour at Calihan Hall. He averaged 16.0 points, 5.0 assists and 3.0 steals per outing as a junior and as a senior Ricks averaged 18.3 points, 6.0 assists and 4.0 steals and led Pershing to a 23–6 record as one of several NCAA Division I recruits on the team.[citation needed] Ricks played in the Detroit All-Star game and was named All-State in 2005. Ricks was ranked third best point guard in the state of Michigan by Prep Spotlight, The Detroit News, and the Detroit Free Press.[5] He was ranked the #1 Ball Handler in the state of Michigan by Prep Spotlight Magazine and ranked one of the top players in the state regardless of class by Rivals.com and Scout.com.[6]

Ricks verbally committed to Western Michigan University as a sophomore in high school, after only playing a year and a half of high school basketball; Ricks was the youngest basketball player to commit to Western Michigan in WMU history.[7][8][9]

College career

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Drey Ricks D1 Mac West Champions
WMU Ricks vs Oregon

Ricks played four years at Western Michigan University.[10][11]

During the 2006 Western Michigan University Men's Basketball European Tour in Athens, Greece, Ricks logged his first career double-double with 22 points, 12 assists and 6 steals against the Greek U National Team. In 2007, Ricks scored 15 points and had 5 assists against the #11 ranked Oregon Ducks. Ricks played a key role in Western Michigan's Mid-American Conference West division championship. In 2007, Ricks was ranked fifth in the MAC conference in three-point shooting for all games.[1]In December 2007 Ricks was named Division 1 MAC West Player of the Week by NCAA CollegeInsider.com. The following week Ricks was named Mid-Major Player of the Week after scoring a 29 points against unbeaten San Diego State University, which was coached by Michigan Fab 5, hall-of-fame Coach Steve Fisher..[12]

In 2008, Ricks made a crossover move against Virginia Tech University thats was selected by ESPN SportsCenter's Top 10 Plays, coming in at number 5.[citation needed] He scored 16 points in 104 seconds, setting a new record for most points scored on ESPN nationally televised in under 3 minutes. Ricks finished in a tie for 12th in scoring 38 points in the ESPN Old Spice Classic tournament.[13][14] In his tenth career start vs Temple University, he scored 17 points and had 4 assists. In WMU's victory over Pepperdine University, Ricks scored 19 points in the second half on his way to making all tournament.

After having an amazing start of his collegiate career. Ricks career was cut short due to a torn ligament in his left wrist during summer team workouts that caused him to sit out and miss numerous games during the 2008–2009 season.[citation needed] Ricks graduated from Western Michigan University with a bachelor's degree in criminal justice.[4]In 2021, Ricks was accepted into the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication graduate program at Arizona State University. After graduating from WMU in 2009, Ricks was selected as youth camp counselor and coach of the Detroit Pistons youth basketball camp at The Palace of Auburn Hills.[15] During summer of 2010, Ricks was selected by the Minnesota Timberwolves and Memphis Grizzles to assist with summer NBA pre-draft workouts. Ricks was selected as a coach for the NBA Adidas youth Basketball camp in Rome, Italy in 2009. Ricks earned the name 'The Basketball Prophet', by the way he breaks-down and analyzes basketball film. He is known to see the smallest details almost impossible to catch with a naked eye.

Rawimpact Clothing Brand

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In 2010, Ricks started the clothing brand Rawimpact that soon that spiraled around the world and became a house-hold name. The clothing line was worn by many marquee athletes and celebrity. In 2011, Ricks opened his Rawimpact flagship store in Kalamazoo, Michigan; the grand opening consisted of autograph signing from Ricks uncle and 7-time world champion boxer Thomas 'Hitman' Hearns. In April 2012, Ricks store Rawimpact was named business of the year by the City of Kalamazoo; soon after Ricks opened a second Rawimpact store located in Sterling Heights, Michigan. Rawimpact clothing brand was recognized by Western Michigan University and the National Pan-Hellenic Council for sponsoring a campus festival with record-breaking students attendance. Ricks clothing brand Rawimpact was recognized by the City of Detroit for being of the main sponsor of Summer Jamz 16. Through his brand, Ricks sponsored 50 underprivileged students to a Detroit Pistons game experience during the 2013 season. In 2014, Ricks clothing brand Rawimpact was featured on VH1 Love & Hip-Hop reality Show & BET's sitcom show The Game. In 2016, Ricks opened Rawimpact Basketball gym located in Las Vegas, NV focusing on youth development. In 2018, Ricks Rawimpact gym hosted various NBA summer league workouts with guest appearance from Jerry West the NBA's logo. Rawimpact Brand was recognized by Fox 5 news Las Vegas for making an impact in the City of Las Vegas in 2018. Durning the COVID-19 Pandemic, Ricks clothing brand Rawimpact sent over 1000 Rawimpact face mask and T-shirts to help the city of Detroit. In the spring of 2021, Ricks became a published author; writing a memoir "Started from Scratch". In 2023, Ricks open up a second Rawimpact basketball gym location. [citation needed]

Sports Analyst

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In 2023 Ricks became TV and radio color commentator for WMU Men's Basketball Program; WMU games were featured on ESPN+ and other media outlets.[citation needed]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Andre Ricks PG". RealGM. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  2. ^ Couch, Graham (October 6, 2011). "Thomas 'Hit Man' Hearns signing autographs in Kalamazoo Friday". Kalamazoo Gazette. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  3. ^ "Book looks at life inside the MAC, including the '05 Bobcat hoop squad". Athens News. December 26, 2006. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  4. ^ a b "How a WMU hoops alum took the long road to a career in basketball". Kalamazoo Gazette. July 24, 2018. Retrieved January 27, 2024. Also at Associated Press, August 4, 2018.
  5. ^ "Detroit Free Press All-PSL Detroit Teams — 2000s". detroitpslbasketball.com. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  6. ^ "WMU Downs Cardinals In Regular-Season Finale; Cards No.9 Seed At MAC". ballstatesports.com. March 4, 2007. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  7. ^ "2005 - 06 Review" (PDF). nmnathletics.com. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  8. ^ "WMU Basketball" (PDF). sidearmsports.com. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  9. ^ "Western Michigan 58". kentstatesports.com. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  10. ^ "2008-09 Basketball-M Roster". wmubroncos.com. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  11. ^ JacobKalamazoo,"The 5 Biggest WMU Wins of the Past Decade". readfieldhouse.com. November 18, 2012. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  12. ^ "College Basketball: Jan 24 Western Michigan At Eastern Michigan". iconsportswire.com. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  13. ^ "Andre Ricks". alexwolf15.com. November 21, 2008. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  14. ^ "Broncos Bust Falcons, 64-50". bgsufalcons.com. February 2, 2002. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
  15. ^ "Dominant First Half Lifts Broncos Past Huskies, 71-52". niuhuskies.com. January 17, 2009. Retrieved November 6, 2019.
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