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The Adventures of Ryan Shaffer (Waynesboro, PA)

 

Name: Ryan Shaffer

Hometown: Waynesboro, Pennsylvania

High School: Waynesboro (PA)

Status: Committed - McDaniel College (1/5/23)

WAYNESBORO, PA -- Ryan Shaffer is him. 

I know a lot of people don't know how to describe what being "him" is like but trust me, Shaffer is him. He's called "Shiesty Shaff" for a reason, and he's one of the best players I've seen in awhile from Pennsylvania. As a senior, Shaffer averaged 15 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists per game to help lead the Indians to a 21-7 record, a Mid-Penn Colonial division title and a solid run in the 6A playoffs. 

I normally don't like to add seniors this late in the game, but Shaffer is an intriguing prospect who can make any coach satisfied. 

He's an immediate bucketgetter from all three levels, a great student in the classroom, family man and treats everybody the same no matter where they come from, how could you not one to be around someone like that? Shaffer is that dude. 

But what's his next mission? 

To work his way into McDaniel's rotation these next four years. 

Let's see if Shiesty Shaff can finesse it in his home state *inside joke*. I caught up with the McDaniel commit on his experience at Waynesboro, committing to Kevin Curley's program and preparation heading into college basketball. Shaffer has a bright future.

Ryan Shaffer Interview
When did you first start playing basketball?
  • "I started playing basketball in fifth grade. When I was younger, I was always a baseball kid. I would eat, breathe, and sleep baseball. But in fifth grade the coaches of my grade's basketball team had asked me to try out for the Basketball team because they thought I was athletic enough to play."

How was life growing up in Southern Pennsylvania?
  • "Growing up on the bottom of PA, I think gives me and a lot of people around my area a different opportunity than a lot of people from Central PA. For me, my house is like 3 minutes away from Maryland. I’m like 2 miles away from going to Smithsburg High School. Being so close to a different state for me is a blessing. Even though it’s right down the road, and PA and Maryland are two different animals. Waynesboro and Hagerstown are polar opposites. I think being this close to a different state allows me to have a lot of opportunities with meeting different kinds of people. Also, playing a different level of competition basketball wise. Maryland basketball and PA basketball are not the same to point that out. As for growing up in Waynesboro, I don’t think I would want to grow up anywhere else. It’s a town that I think catches a lot of people off with how big it actually is. I always tell people we are a 6A school, and it blows them away because everybody thinks Boro is a small town. It’s a safe town and a peaceful town where you will probably know a lot of people, but also not know a lot of people. My house is right across from a corn field, I grow up in a nice area and was blessed enough to have parents who financially have our family in a good situation."

How was your senior year?

  • "Senior Year pretty much has been all I could ask for and more. Basketball this year we had the best team in Waynesboro's history. We accomplished all the preseason goals we had set as a team. When our basketball team was doing great this year, it felt like our whole community was cheering us on. I couldn’t have asked for anything more team wise. Individually, I think this year I accomplished everything I've dreamed of doing. All the goals I had, I accomplished this year. I think making myself and my parents proud was my main goal. I knew I accomplished that, which makes me happy as nothing is given. It’s always earned, and I know that all the early mornings I have put in is paying off. All the opportunities I’ve taken advantage of by getting to play against really good players in pickup games, and who I've worked out with. I feel that I’ve earned my recognition."
Editor's note: Indeed he has!

A major question everybody is curious about, why did you decide to commit to McDaniel to further your career at the next level? 
  • "Well I have been told by a good amount of people that I committed early, which I understand considering I committed in January. I understand why people think that. The main reason I did commit was because of my parents wanting me to early, so I respected my parents with that. I chose to commit to McDaniel for a plethora of reasons. To keep it simple though, they where the school the showed that they wanted me to the most. They sent letters, would give me phone calls, and cared about my performances and how I was doing."
  • "I wanted to go somewhere where I was wanted to and could find success,” He continued. “It’s a beautiful campus with great facilities, and all the guys on the basketball squad seem dope. It’s a nice small school where the class size is small, which I wanted as well. I will have the ability to connect with a lot of people on the campus, and make friends even outside of the basketball guys. Very high quality academic program, which me and my parents also value very much.”
Editor's note: RPN's motto, "Go where you're celebrated, not shaded." Cop your merch soon!

How would you describe your experience at Waynesboro Area Senior High School?
  • "My time at Waynesboro high School was definitely fun. Coming into high school as a freshman, I had it a lot better than other people. I had an older brother, Bryce who was 2 years older than me. So shoutout to my older brother for being my role model throughout life. He was a two year varsity basketball starter, and a 3 year varsity baseball starter, so he was a good athlete and a popular guy as well. He made it a lot easier on me because coming into high school, I was already familiar with a lot of older people, and had older friends because of him. He now plays baseball at York College, so shout-out to him for being a dope big brother."
  • "I have always been an Honor Roll type of guy." He continued. "I got all my credits to graduate, and I don’t go into school until 9:30 everyday, then leave an hour early. Waynesboro has a pretty underrated social scene. There are a lot of cool people in Waynesboro, and a lot of people who are doing the thing in life right now. I highly doubt a lot of people would know that Forrest Rhyne, who’s in the NFL right now, graduated from here in 2019. The community appreciates and doesn’t take our programs for granted. The past four years for me have been glorifying, and I think the same goes for all Waynesboro seniors."

What are some takeaways from your senior year?
  • "Some takeaways that I have from my senior season are that are not everything’s always going to go your way. This year our team was really really good, and we did some really really cool things. Even through all the success, there’s still some things that I felt like we left out on the table. There’s been a lot of pros so far in my senior year, and there really hasn’t been that many cons. I think one of the main takeaways from the season is I saw how much my confidence grew/ I’m not the most confident guy, and at times I lack a lot of confidence. I feel like this senior year I’ve gained a lot of confidence not only in my ability to play basketball, but in every day life."
  • "A con," He continued. "Could probably be that I’m going to be playing with a full set of new guys this next year. I won’t ever play with my childhood guys again, so it'll be new."

You’re in the late stage of your career heading into college. What kinds of things are you doing to make yourself the best player you can be?
  • "Right now since the season's over, I just try to find basketball in every way I can. If there is pickup games or training sessions, I take advantage of all the opportunities that come up. I have a trainer named Tyler Stoner, who runs GC Skills Development, took me under his wing when I was a freshman and has been there ever since training me all the time. Right now, I’ll just be working out with him, and going down to the college and playing pickup with the team. I am trying to find all the pickup and basketball opportunities I can."

Who's your favorite basketball player and why?
  • "Kevin Durant for sure. I’ve always like KD even though that move to the Warriors was weak. He’s just a real guy who recognizes other peoples game and successes. He’s a funny guy when it comes to social media, and he’s entertaining. Not to mention he’s the greatest scorer in the history of basketball."

Who would you consider your role model?

  • "My big brother is definitely the main one. He’s been my sidekick ever since we where little. I used to want to be like him back in the day because I saw how much other people liked him, and wanted that for myself. We would compete athletically and actually got to play together my sophomore year of basketball, so that was cool too."

What are some career goals for you?
  • "Yes, my main goal is to definitely just find success in college in multiple aspects. See what I can do basketball wise and let me take it wherever it takes me. Hopefully to break some records and do some cool things. The main goal long term is to get my dream job, start a family and be a successful man. It sounds super corny, but one of my biggest goals is I wanna be filthy rich man. I’m talking about having money money. That’s a big goal of mine."
Editor's note: I laughed, but obviously you can't see it.

What are your expectations going into your freshman year?
  • "My expectations are pretty high. It’s a very young team so i’m expecting a good squad for years to come. I’m expecting to help contribute to the team's success as well. I’m expecting a good year one, but even better years to follow."

Thank you Shaff for taking the time to talk with me this afternoon. Do you have any words of encouragement or motivation? Any last words?

  • "My main piece of encouragement is the same thing that everybody says pretty much. It flies by so fast and you’ll be done before you know it, so cherish it while you can and make memories."


Ryan Shaffer - 2023 McDaniel Commit

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Location: Waynesboro, PA 17268, USA