After playing only one year in college, Blake Wesley has decided to take his talents to a bigger stage and declared for the upcoming 2022 NBA Draft. He is a number 20 prospect in the ESPN 100, with the potential to develop further to become a great playmaker and chase a bright future in the league.
Blake Wesley 2022 NBA Draft Profile
College Career
Even though Wesley was only a freshman, he quickly played his way into the Notre Dame Fighting Irish’s starting lineup. He finished his first, and only, college season with an average of 14.4 points, 3.7 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.3 steals. Throughout the season, Wesley shot a decent 40.4% on field goals, 30.3% on three-pointers, and 65.7% on free throws.
The freshman managed to surprise many when he turned out to be the engine behind several of the Irish’s wins, providing shot creation, scoring, and playmaking on the offensive end.
Wesley showed these skills for instance in the Irish’s victory at Clemson on February 2nd. He scored 18 points in the first ten minutes of the game, including four three-pointers. In recognition of his hard work, Wesley took home several awards. Among them were selections to the 2022 All-ACC Second Team and the 2022 ACC All-Rookie Team.
Strengths
At 6’5 Wesley is a rather tall guard, which also gives him size-related advantages on defense. His biggest strengths lie on the offensive end, though. Wesley is an incredibly athletic player, showing off his speed and explosiveness when moving to the rim. This makes him a threat in one-on-one scenarios he often finds himself in due to his ability to split a zone defense, and as a lethal fast-break player. Moreover, Wesley is a pretty decent shooter, despite some minor inconsistencies in his numbers. His career-high of made three-pointers in a single game is a rather expressive six.
Besides his ability to score regularly, Wesley has also proven to be a valuable asset in crunch time. During the team’s First Four victory over Rutgers, for example, Wesley managed to tie the game late in the first overtime. Later, he then provided for one of his teammates to score the winning basket at the end of the second overtime.
Weaknesses
With only 19-years and one season of college basketball experience, Wesley is still a little immature. His shooting percentages could certainly improve further. Currently, the guard is a little too focused on scoring, instead of playmaking and distributing the ball. Wesley definitely needs to develop a more mature feel for the game and work on his decision-making. This should all come in due time with more experience and enough playing time though. Wesley already proved that he could excel in college and new challenges will surely help him improve his current weaknesses.
NBA Comparison
Many characteristics of Wesley’s game draw up parallels to Miami Heat guard Tyler Herro. They are both young, athletic players, quick ball handlers, and good shooters with plenty of potential to develop further and further with every minute of added experience.
Draft Projection
Blake Wesley can most probably expect to be drafted towards the end of the first round.
