Blake Wesley (basketball)
 Wesley with the Austin Spurs in 2022 | |
| No. 14 – San Antonio Spurs | |
|---|---|
| Position | Point guard / shooting guard |
| League | NBA |
| Personal information | |
| Born | March 16, 2003 South Bend, Indiana, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
| Listed weight | 185 lb (84 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Riley (South Bend, Indiana) |
| College | Notre Dame (2021–2022) |
| NBA draft | 2022: 1st round, 25th overall pick |
| Selected by the San Antonio Spurs | |
| Playing career | 2022–present |
| Career history | |
| 2022–present | San Antonio Spurs |
| 2022–2023 | →Austin Spurs |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| Stats at NBA.com | |
| Stats at Basketball Reference | |
Blake Carrington Wesley (born March 16, 2003) is an American professional basketball player for the San Antonio Spurs of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish.
Early life
[edit]Wesley played for James Whitcomb Riley High School in South Bend, Indiana. As a junior, he averaged 26 points and 6.3 rebounds per game.[1] In his senior season, Wesley averaged 27.1 points, 6.1 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game, leading Riley to the Class 4A sectional title. He was named to the Indiana All-Star team.[2]
Wesley was a consensus four-star recruit. On November 20, 2020, he committed to playing college basketball for Notre Dame, choosing the Fighting Irish over offers from Creighton, Kansas State, Louisville, Maryland, Purdue and Xavier.[3][4]
| Name | Hometown | High school / college | Height | Weight | Commit date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blake Wesley PG / SG |
South Bend, IN | Riley (IN) | 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) | 170 lb (77 kg) | Nov 20, 2020 | |
Star ratings: Rivals: 247Sports: ESPN: ESPN grade: 82
| ||||||
| Overall recruiting rankings: Rivals: 104 247Sports: 116 ESPN: — | ||||||
Sources:
| ||||||
College career
[edit]Wesley had an immediate impact during his freshman season at Notre Dame, and analysts began to consider him a first-round 2022 NBA draft prospect.[5] In his college debut on November 13, 2021, he scored 21 points in a 68–52 win over Cal State Northridge.[6] On November 29, 2021, Wesley scored a career-high 24 points in an 82–72 loss to Illinois.[7] He was named to the Second Team All-ACC as well as the All-Rookie Team.[8] As a freshman, Wesley averaged 14.4 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. On March 30, 2022, he declared for the 2022 NBA draft, forgoing his remaining college eligibility.[9]
Professional career
[edit]On June 23, 2022, Wesley was selected with the 25th pick in the 2022 NBA draft by the San Antonio Spurs.[10] Wesley joined the Spurs' 2022 NBA Summer League roster. In his Summer League debut, Wesley scored twenty points and five assists in a 90–99 loss against the Cleveland Cavaliers.[11] On July 5, 2022, Wesley signed a rookie-scale contract with the Spurs.[12] Wesley made his NBA debut on October 28, 2022, scoring 10 points and 4 assists in a 129–124 win against the Chicago Bulls. Two days later, in his second career game, Wesley tore his left MCL when he collided with Jaden McDaniels during the second quarter.[13] Wesley was assigned to the Austin Spurs on December 16, and returned to game action less than 7 weeks after his injury, scoring 12 points in a 112–102 loss to the Capitanes de Ciudad de México on December 16.
Career statistics
[edit]| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
NBA
[edit]Regular season
[edit]| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022–23 | San Antonio | 37 | 1 | 18.1 | .321 | .385 | .591 | 2.2 | 2.6 | .7 | .1 | 5.0 |
| 2023–24 | San Antonio | 61 | 3 | 14.4 | .474 | .218 | .667 | 1.5 | 2.7 | .5 | .1 | 4.4 |
| Career | 98 | 4 | 15.8 | .398 | .299 | .639 | 1.8 | 2.7 | .6 | .1 | 4.6 | |
College
[edit]| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021–22 | Notre Dame | 35 | 28 | 29.3 | .404 | .303 | .657 | 3.7 | 2.4 | 1.3 | .1 | 14.4 |
References
[edit]- ^ Neddenriep, Kyle (June 25, 2020). "Riley's Wesley nets 247sports' No. 100 national ranking". South Bend Tribune. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
- ^ Skol Jr., Mark (April 19, 2021). "St. Joe's JR Konieczny and Riley's Blake Wesley named 2021 Indiana All-Stars". WNDU-TV. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
- ^ Noie, Tom (November 20, 2020). "South Bend Riley guard Blake Wesley commits to Notre Dame". South Bend Tribune. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
- ^ "Blake Wesley". 247sports.com. 247 Sports. Retrieved March 7, 2022.
- ^ "Notre Dame's Blake Wesley making a name for himself". USA Today. Associated Press. January 19, 2022. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
- ^ "Wesley, Goodwin propel Notre Dame past CS Northridge 68–52". ESPN. Associated Press. November 13, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
- ^ "Cockburn, Plummer lead Illinois past Notre Dame 82–72". ESPN. Associated Press. November 29, 2021. Retrieved February 10, 2022.
- ^ "ACC Unveils 2021–22 Men's Basketball Awards" (Press release). Atlantic Coast Conference. March 7, 2022. Retrieved March 7, 2022.
- ^ Givony, Jonathan (March 30, 2022). "Freshman Blake Wesley 'ready to start my next journey,' will leave Notre Dame to enter NBA draft". Retrieved March 30, 2022.
- ^ "Spurs select Jeremy Sochan, Malaki Branham and Blake Wesley in 2022 NBA draft". NBA.com. June 23, 2022. Retrieved June 23, 2022.
- ^ "San Antonio Spurs vs Cleveland Cavaliers Jul 8, 2022 Box Scores | NBA.com". www.nba.com. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
- ^ "SPURS SIGN 2022 FIRST ROUND DRAFT PICK BLAKE WESLEY". www.nba.com. Retrieved July 14, 2022.
- ^ "NBA rookie had found an early role, and groove, as backup in San Antonio". Notre Dame Insider. Retrieved December 25, 2022.
External links
[edit]- Career statistics from NBA.com and Basketball Reference
- Notre Dame Fighting Irish bio