(Picture via Yann Edits)

On Friday, South Bend Riley guard Blake Wesley announced his signing to Notre Dame. The explosive athlete had many other high-major offers before deciding on the Irish.

Wesley joins South Bend St. Joe star JR Konieczny in Notre Dame's 2021 class. Mike Brey and the Irish usually don't recruit Indiana hard, but they were able to get two high-quality recruits from their backyard this time around. Notre Dame should have a handful of upperclassmen guard when Wesley and Konieczny step on campus next year. It will be intriguing to see the playing time that they can earn as freshmen. 

Wesley first stepped on the Indiana scene with his defensive ability for Brian Keeton's G3 GRIND team. As a freshman with that group, Wesley used his quickness to be a lock down one on one defender. He mixed in a few transition baskets, but Wesley's main roll was defending the other team's best perimeter player. During his sophomore year at Riley, Wesley started to show more offensive tools. He had a few breakout games like his performance in Indianapolis against Cathedral. It was still an up and down season for him playing with a talented group of seniors. In the summer going into his junior season, Wesley's game went to a new level. His athleticism reached an elite level - flying in transition, quick first step, stellar lateral quickness - and he became a go-to scorer. That's when schools like Notre Dame, Purdue, Indiana, Illinois, Wichita State, and Cincinnati extended offers to Wesley.

In his junior year with Riley, Wesley was a one-man show. He averaged 26 points per game for a team that scored 58.6. His best game came against Trey Galloway and Culver Academies. Wesley was in the zone that game. He scored 34 of Riley's 40 points in the narrow loss. When his outside shot is locked in like it was that day, Wesley looks like a top 25 player in the country. But to this point, the consistency to be ranked at that level hasn't been there. 

At the end, Wesley listed a final six of Purdue, Maryland, Creighton, Xavier, and Kansas State. Many schools backed off Wesley in the summer and fall. That helped Notre Dame land a dynamic prospect.