Ryan Paradise played at Northern Illinois University where he was Team Captain in 2007-2008. He played on a MAC Division Championship team in 2006 and was a member of the NCAA Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).
Before attending NIU, Ryan played at Naperville Central HS where he received All-State honors as a Senior and finished his career as the schools all-time leader in 3-pt field goals and 2nd in scoring.