From Butler High to Allen Iverson, the story of Virginia Tech recruit Patrick Wessler
This week, Combine Academy 7-foot senior Patrick Wessler played in the type of game he probably never could’ve imagined for himself a few years ago. Wessler, a Virginia Tech recruit, was in the Allen Iverson 24K Showcase game in Memphis, playing with some of the nation’s top players. A lot has changed since he made one of the biggest decisions of his life two years ago, when Wessler decided to leave Butler High School in Matthews and transfer to Combine, a relatively new school in Lincolnton. At Butler, Wessler was the unquestioned star. His father was on the coaching staff. After his sophomore season, Wessler had become the 10th player in school history to be named conference player of the year. So why leave? “It was mostly the skill development piece,” Wessler said, “and the chance to play for (former North Carolina and NBA guard) coach (Jeff) McInnis. I know that would help me get ready for the next level. And I mean, my friends on the team weren’t mad at me because they knew what it was.” Wessler said life at Combine, which is also a boarding school, was much different than at Butler. The daily schedules are different. The players are different. Combine brings together some of the region’s top talent and has been nationally ranked for the past several seasons. “It’s just about time,” Wessler said. “We work four to five hours a day here and the competition every day is better. At Butler, I was the tallest kid and had a guy 6-2 guarding me at practice. Here, there’s other 7-footers.” left a successful program at Vance, which won the state title two years ago, to take a job at a school that had two players and nine points returning. Wessler wanted to be closer to his family. His home is three minutes from Butler. Wessler got better rapidly at Combine, helping the team to a 25-5 record and a state championship this season. He averaged 18 points, 14 rebounds and 2.3 blocks and ended the year ranked No. 1 in the state among seniors, according to N.C. analyst Rick Lewis of Phenom Hoop Report. McInnis said he was not too surprised by how good Wessler has become — nor how quickly. “I think from the day we got him, he made tremendous strides,” said McInnis, who resigned from Combine recently to pursue other opportunities. “He’s a great dude and he just wants to get better. Kids like that are a dream to coach. He never complained the two years I coached him. Whatever I asked him to do, he did. He just did the work, got better and he was the player of the year in the state. I don’t think we saw that two years ago.” Wessler said that without making the decision to move, he doesn’t think he would’ve been able to choose between Providence and Virginia Tech for college, or reach his lofty ranking. “Definitely not,” he said. “I would’ve been a really good player at Butler, but in the big picture, I wouldn’t be as good as I am now. I would probably be (a) mid-major (recruit).” Instead he’s going to the ACC, and McInnis thinks he’s only going to get better. “Virginia Tech is getting a player who can do a lot of stuff,” McInnis said. “And they’ll see how much he can we he gets to college. We didn’t have him shooting a lot of 3s, but late in the year, we opened up the court and let him shoot. I mean, he can pass, he shoots it great, and he can rebound and block shots. He’s the total package. I think they’re getting a little of everything from Pat.”
[Post edited by YBYSAIAHokie at 05/02/2022 10:26AM]