Deja Kelly is a point guard for the Oregon Ducks. She played the 2024-25 season with Oregon as a graduate transfer, having previously played for the University of North Carolina from 2020-2024. Kelly was a top-ranked recruit from high school, where she was named a McDonald’s All-American and a Jordan Brand All-American.
She was rated as a five-star prospect and ranked the No. 10 recruit in the 2020 class by ESPNW. Kelly received multiple accolades in high school, including the 2019-20 Gatorade Texas Girls Basketball Player of the Year and Texas Player of the Year by MaxPreps and USA Today.
Meet Deja Kelly’s Family
Kelly was raised by a single parent, but both parents are still alive.
Deja Kelly was born in San Antonio, Texas, on Sept. 8, 2001, to Darren Kelly and Theresa Nunn. She was raised by her mother, Theresa. Kelly’s basketball roots stem directly from her parents, as Nunn played college basketball at Valley City State University.
Nunn, Kelly’s mother, coached her daughter on the South Texas HOYAS, while Darren Kelly played for the Texas Longhorns from 1999-2001. He also played basketball overseas for 11 years. Both parents are American citizens; Darren resides in Cedar Hill, while Theresa resides in San Antonio.
Kelly’s Collegiate Career
As a freshman at North Carolina, Kelly averaged 11 points, 2.9 assists, and 2.3 rebounds per game. She was named Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Freshman of the Week twice and made the ACC All-Freshman Team.
In her sophomore season, she recorded a then-career-high 31 points against Clemson. She helped North Carolina reach the Sweet 16 round of the 2022 NCAA Tournament, the program’s first appearance in that round in seven years. She averaged 16.5 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game.
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She earned first-team all-ACC honors in her sophomore and junior seasons. In her junior season, she averaged 16.3 points and 3.2 assists per game, setting a new career high of 32 points against Syracuse. Kelly won a silver medal with the United States at the 2023 FIBA Women’s AmeriCup in Mexico.
Kelly studied broadcast journalism and aspires to become a sports broadcaster after her playing career. She served as an anchor for Sports Xtra, a student-run show at the UNC Hussman School of Journalism and Media. She has enrolled in the broadcast journalism master’s program at Oregon.
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