Former UNC star Deja Kelly pens heartfelt letter for Andraya Carter about exciting weekend spent "shadowing" her: "So dope to learn from"

Former North Carolina Tar Heels star Deja Kelly has had a busy offseason. She was one of the most coveted players in the transfer portal after deciding to leave Chapel Hill and ultimately joining the Oregon Ducks.

Most recently, the Ducks star shadowed ESPN analyst Andraya Carter for a weekend appearing on ESPN's "WNBA Countdown" for the game pitting the New York Liberty against the Las Vegas Aces.

Kelly posted a series of pictures of herself shadowing Carter with a heartfelt message attached on Instagram:

"I had the honor of shadowing @andraya_carter for the weekend! She’s such an amazing talent that’s so dope to learn from, as well as all of the other incredible people I met and learned from in the studio! I’m so grateful for all of the advice I received to help me pursue my future career as a Sports Analyst! This is only the beginning! ☺️🙏🏽," Kelly wrote.

"Side note: making my mini debut on ABC for the @wnba was probably the highlight of my year 🤭"

The popular Andraya Carter only had good words to say about Deja Kelly on the broadcast.

"Great day on WNBA countdown also a great day to get the next wave of analysts ready to go," Carter said after the show. "She was great."

Deja Kelly destined for analyst career

Deja Kelly played for the North Carolina Tar Heels for four years before graduating from the institution last month with a bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism.

During an interview with "Go Ducks," she talked about how long she has dreamed of being a journalist.

"At a young age, I knew that's what I wanted to do," Kelly said. "I would practice in the mirror and practice to my mom."

She hosted the Tar Heels-based student-run show, "Sports Xtra," during her time in Chapel Hill.

After committing to the Oregon Ducks despite a poor 2023-2024 season, Deja Kelly will study at the School of Journalism, which is considered one of the country's best.

She said that she has always been inspired by giants of the industry, including Maria Taylor and Holly Rowe.

Appearing on ESPN alongside Andraya Carter is just one of several steps that Deja Kelly has taken into the journalism world having also had the opportunity to shadow professionals during the NBA Summer League and NBA draft last year.