"That did occur to me," son Tony said, laughing. "But you can only say so much to my mom before she is going to be, well, a mom . . . She makes her own decisions."
Tony the Younger is now a 6-5, 175-pound senior at Franklin Learning Center, and basketball is going quite well, thank you. Thursday, he accumulated 20 points, 16 rebounds and three blocked shots as the visiting Bobcats bested Murrell Dobbins Tech, 65-55, in Public B.
Ellis' positions are numerous.
"I guess you'd call me a combo forward who also plays center," he said. "My main job is to rebound and play defense. I'm not really a main scorer. Defense is my focus. If a dude gets beat, you have to help out. It's all about teamwork."
Officially George Antonio Ellis Jr., Tony the Younger is a straight-A student with designs on becoming a computer engineer or, perhaps, a personal trainer. Arcadia heads his pursuers, for the moment. Dad, meanwhile, dabbles in refereeing.
"He can't do Public League games like before, because he has a different job now," said Ellis, who lives on 800 block of North Warnock Place, near 11th and Poplar. "When he can get away, he likes to watch me play.
"He just tells me to focus and play hard. He's not the kind of guy who stands right by the court and screams, 'What are you doing?!' Nobody wants to hear that. He'll tell me little things now and then, but mostly he wants me to figure stuff out on my own."
Has Dad ever reffed one of Son's games?
"When I was a freshman, he did a game we played against Imhotep," Ellis said. "That's been the only time. I was just there, really. Sitting on the bench in a uniform. I didn't get in. He did a good job. When I was younger, I used to go watch him ref."
Ellis shot 7-for-16 and 6-for-9 and scored 11 points in a 21-18 fourth quarter. Sean Lloyd, nephew of former 'Brook all-timer Lewis Lloyd ('77, NBA), added 14 points and 12 boards, while Troy Steed contributed 12 points and three assists.
Dequan Jackson (16) and Kiwuan Trawick (14, fouled out early in fourth quarter) topped Dobbins.
One other thing Tony Sr. does not do: bore Tony Jr. with nonstop 'Brook stories.
"He doesn't talk about it too much," Ellis said. "He has some team pictures, but that's about it. He does mention how many future pros were playing back then."
