Prospect Update: Nick Blake (2020)
One of the West’s hottest prospects right now is Las Vegas turned LA product, Nick Blake.
The 6-foot-6 shooting guard amassed plenty of Division I offers while playing with Durango and the Las Vegas Knicks the past two years. Now, he’s re-classed, from 2019 to 2020, and will attend Los Angeles’ Middlebrooks Academy this season.
He’ll be a guy that plans to make a big splash in a lot of ways with the Sphinx this winter.
“As a player, I can do it all,” said Blake. “If I need to go score it and I can definitely do that. I can handle the ball, I can rebound, I like to play defense and run the floor.”
This past spring and summer, Blake was running with one of the nation’s best grassroots teams, Las Vegas Knicks 17U. He was instrumental in that squad’s success.
“My role on that team was to be a leader. I was the main scorer and one of the premier ball-handlers and I was the leading rebounders on the team,” said Blake. “I really improved on my defense and a lot of the games I’d guard the other team’s best player. I think I had a good season, I really worked on being more consistent.”
Blake will attend Middlebrooks Academy along with Knicks teammate Orlando Robinson. For Blake, the Los Angeles academy was a better opportunity, that he plans to make the most of.
“It was just a better opportunity, and I get to improve on my academics and on the court. So, it was a no-brainer to come out here,” said Blake. “My role will be to be a ball-handler and scorer and just produce for myself and my teammates.”
Formerly a 2019 guy, Blake has re-classed to a 2020, and has plenty of time to let the rest of his recruitment materialize.
He’s already got more a slew of offers, including Xavier, Colorado State and New Mexico.
“I just really want to see if I can get a high-major program that can really fit my game. And just be a really good fit for me to be able to play right away,” said Blake.
“I’m not saying it has to be high major, but I think I can play at that level, so I want to get something at that level. I really have confidence in myself that I can play at that level.”