Wade talks about committing to Gonzaga

I was able to visit with Jesse Wade by telephone for a few minutes tonight as he awaited a flight from Las Vegas to Salt Lake.

Below, you’ll find my article that will run in Saturday’s S-R.

By Jim Meehan

Staff writer

Jesse Wade, a 6-foot, 170-pound point guard at Davis High in Kaysville, Utah, has orally committed to Gonzaga’s basketball program but it could be a while before he puts on a GU uniform.

Wade, the first member of Gonzaga’s 2015 recruiting class, said he’s planning on serving a two-year LDS Mission after high school before joining the Bulldogs. GU’s 2014 class includes point guard Josh Perkins and guard Silas Melson.

“It’s just the winning tradition, the coaching staff is amazing and the players, talking to all of them, they’re great guys,” Wade said of his reasons for committing to Gonzaga. “It was fun talking to them and all the people around campus were so nice. Everything just felt right.”

Wade averaged 14.3 points, 2.4 assists and 2.4 rebounds as a sophomore, earning 5A third-team all-state honors. He’s listed as a three-star recruit by ESPN.com and Scout.com. He’s rated No. 21 among 2015 point guards by Scout.com.

Wade said he had scholarship offers from UC Riverside, Utah State and San Francisco and was talking with BYU, Utah, Stanford and Harvard.

“I can score the ball, I work hard all the time,” Wade said. “I’m the type of person that isn’t flashy but I’ll get the job done.”

Wade said he wants to improve all aspects of his game and also get bigger and stronger.

People have told Wade that he plays like Gonzaga junior guard Kevin Pangos. “That’s a big confidence boost for me,” he said, “because I’ve looked up to him so long.”

Wade’s grandfather, Lester, won four state championships coaching basketball at Teton High (Driggs, Idaho). Wade’s parents, Amanda and Eric, played collegiately at Colorado Northwestern and Ricks, respectively.