Bella Fontleroy - Certified bucket

Kickapoo’s Ysabella “Bella” Fontleroy is one of the best (if not the best) girl hoopers Southwest Missouri has had in a long, long time.

Bella Fontleroy is a certified bucket. No ifs, ands, or buts about it… Unless you are counting butts getting kicked, which tends to happen wherever Fontleroy laces up to hoop. The 6’2 guard has been one of the most highly recruited basketball players, boys or girls, that Southwest Missouri has had in a long time.

Despite tearing her ACL her sophomore season at Kickapoo, Fontleroy kept her nose to the grindstone and worked her way right back into being sought after by many of the literal top programs in the country. She ultimately committed to hooping for Baylor, a perennial national championship contender.

“She is one of the best, toughest players the area has seen in years,” says Rob Yanders. “For this area? She is one of the best of all time without a doubt. She is a heck of a player; a storied Kickapoo career but also legit WNBA potential.”

Yanders is confident that Fontleroy’s future is bright. He says she is “great at basketball but is even better as a person.” This is a big compliment with all the area athletes Yanders sees year in and year out. Character counts.

Naturally gifted as she is, so much of what we see on the court from Bella is a result of blood, sweat, and tears shed during the offseason. What we see today is the result of years of work, whether with coaches and trainers or with her parents, who are certainly no strangers to on-court success themselves.

Her parents, both William Fontleroy and Carolyn Fontleroy (née Weirick), were part of some of the most prolific teams to ever come out of Missouri State University.

A MSU alumni himself, Yanders says that he can see a bit of both of them in Bella. “More than anything else, I see her Mom’s toughness in her game,” Yanders says. “I see her Dad’s versatility as well. He was a big, tough guard. Success in hoops just simply runs through that family.”

Fontleroy’s most underrated skills as a player

As heavily recruited as she has been, Baylor knows what they are getting in Fontleroy. She is an exceptional rebounder, shooter, and competitor. Her toughness cannot be understated. Yanders says that she is truly an all-around great player, but her most underrated skills may be those of a facilitator.

“Handling the ball, putting it on the deck… all of those key guard skills are what is most underrated about her,” Yanders says. “She is an underrated passer. She is unselfish but still offensively dominant.”

Unselfish players that can still come through as offensive forces *cough* Lebron James *cough* have a track record of impressive collegiate and often professional careers.

Yanders and The Basketball Movement are excited not only to see how far Fontleroy can carry her Kickapoo team this year but what she can accomplish going forward. The sky is the limit, but only if you work as hard as Bella Fontleroy.

We will be watching and cheering.