Ryan Legler making his own hoops mark at Wildwood Catholic
The St. Joseph fans leaning over the railing above the court to yell at Ryan Legler on Wednesday night knew a lot about the Wildwood Catholic senior guard.
The St. Joseph fans leaning over the railing above the court to yell at Ryan Legler on Wednesday night knew a lot about the Wildwood Catholic senior guard.
"They even know my middle name," Legler said.
That would Timothy.
Like his famous father, former La Salle University star, 10-year NBA player and current ESPN analyst Tim Legler.
Ryan Legler's mother is a well-known former athlete as well. As Jennifer Snyder, she was a multi-sport star at Middle Township and also played basketball at La Salle.
"She scored 1,600 [in high school] before there was a three-point line," Ryan Legler said.
For much of his life, Ryan Legler said, he's heard about his parents' athletic accomplishments.
But his bloodline hardly seems like a burden on the court, where the slender 6-footer is a smooth and steady lead guard for one of South Jersey's top programs.
"It hasn't been easy," Wildwood Catholic coach David DeWeese said. "And Ryan is such a competitive kid. But he's handled it great. He's been so dependable."
Ryan Legler has been a rock for Wildwood Catholic (14-8), which has risen to No. 9 in the Inquirer Top 25 and will enter the Cape-Atlantic League tournament as the third seed behind St. Augustine Prep and Atlantic City.
"I think we have a good chance," Ryan Legler said. "We've been playing a lot better in recent games, shooting better, playing with more confidence."
In Wednesday night's 57-50 victory over St. Joseph, Legler contributed 11 points with three assists as Wildwood Catholic clinched its sixth straight division title.
Legler made both ends of a one-and-one with two minutes, 21 seconds on the clock as the Crusaders fought off the Wildcats' rally before a near-capacity crowd in St. Joseph's little gymnasium.
"He's so steady, so reliable," DeWeese said of Legler. "He wasn't very vocal before this year, but now as a senior he's become even more of a leader.
"He's our quarterback. We want the ball in his hands."
Tim Legler made 260 of 604 three-point attempts in his NBA career (43 percent) and won the league's three-point contest in 1996.
Ryan Legler is a dangerous shooter from distance, and he's money from the free-throw line. But his primary role is handling the ball and orchestrating the offense.
He leads the team with 88 assists. He averages 7.9 points per game.
" 'Unselfish' is the best way to describe him," DeWeese said.
Tim Legler said he is "incredibly proud" of his son's development as a student, athlete and person.
"He's been targeted because he's my son," Tim Legler said Friday afternoon by telephone from New Orleans, where he is covering the NBA all-star game. "I told him you have to have thick skin and ear muffs, but you also want to be competitive and don't be a pushover for people."
Tim Legler said it was a struggle at times for Ryan Legler to deal with the pressure of being the son of a former NBA player.
"It took time to get there," Tim Legler said. "He would get frustrated at times when he was younger. . . . But to see where he is now, to see the kind of person and the kind of player he has become, I couldn't be prouder of him.
"He's a different kind of player than I was. I attacked all the time. I wanted to score all the time.
"He wants to run a team, be a leader, and all he cares about is if the team wins."
Ryan Legler decided earlier this month to continue his academic and athletic career at Rowan University and play for the Profs' first-year coach, former Pitman and Penn State star Joe Crispin.
"I love Crispin and love the way Rowan plays," Ryan Legler said.
Ryan Legler said he used to bristle when he would hear unfavorable comparisons to his dad.
But he mostly laughed at those St. Joseph supporters on Wednesday night.
"I used to hear it constantly, and I used to consider it an insult," Legler said. "I would hear all the time, 'You're not your dad.'
"But now I realize I'm not trying to be my dad. I'm just trying to be the best version of myself."
@PhilAnastasia