JotCast | November 23 Notre Dame men's basketball chat

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Thomas Noie

3:13

That will do it for today. Thanks to everyone for participating, but I've got a few piles of leaves calling my name out back. We'll do another one in December, Stay tuned!

2:37

Let's go with a .500 record overall and at least six league wins, which would double the output from last year. That, and this team COMPETES until March. They may not win every game, but if they'

Illinois Fool

2:36

Considering all of the youth and being Coach's first year, what would make the season a success? a .500 record? 7 ACC wins? Continued improvement? Winning the ACC tourney? (Okay so the last one might be a dream but you never know)

Thomas Noie

1:53

Jim: The great unknown. With Mike Brey it was, we want to win. They won. They still were slow to come around. It's a hard, hard sell. Like Duke football. Like Indiana football. A school's fan base can only prioritize so much.

Jim Tal, Valley Center CA.

1:51

Another one from me Tom. What will it take for Micah to win back the fan base and get the Irish fans and students juiced up about this program once again? That seems like a mighty heavy lift, particularly if it takes a couple of years or more to get this thing back on the rails.

Thomas Noie

1:51

It's the other Iron Bowl school. And that's a big IF...

Ray

1:51

We should get a good idea early on if we can compete this year in the ACC. We play Alabama on a neutral court, @ South Carolina, and @ Miami in our first six games. If Notre Dame can go 4-2 in our first six games we could be looking at a decent season.

Thomas Noie

1:51

Notre Dame will compete. That's not going to be the issue. Will Notre Dame have the talent and the know-how to win? That comes with talent, sure, but it also comes with culture. And that's going to take some time. It just is.

Wadelite

1:50

Curious who in the ACC really scares you in terms of talent and size? For me it's just Duke and UNC. Miami has minimal depth and size. They lost their 2 best players. Clemson has some dudes but none seem uber athletic. Virginia had the best coach, but they are replacing 4 starters. The portal and the roster shuffling makes it more possible for a team like ND to be competitive.

Thomas Noie

1:31

Wade: Both had to go. College wasn't for them. It happens. He maxed out his one year, both for himself and for Notre Dame. Do it all again the same way, probably. In fact, I'm certain.

Wadelite

1:30

Blake Wesley and Romeo Langford seem like birds of a feather. Did not want to be in college beyond a year but were not polished enough to become an NBA rotation player.

Thomas Noie

1:30

When you have a chance to go, you go. If the NBA people are telling you you're a first-round pick, you go. Blake Wesley had to go. He massaged that one year of school (really, one semester). There was no way he was doing the school thing another year. It wasn't going to work for him. It wasn't going to work for the program. And who really these days IS ready for the NBA? You take your shot, and then the rest is up to you. You got paid, then what?

1:28

Jim: Not surprised at all, because that's not what Notre Dame was when Mike Brey was the coach. Could it have been an NBA feeder program? Maybe. Byut Brey understood his marchign orders - get solid college basketball players who MIGHT develop into NBA talents. But it was more the student part, then the athlete. So he recruited to that. He hit on Jerian Grant and Pat Connaughton. He would've hit on Bonzie Colson, except the broken foot had other ideas. This has never been a program that is going to consistently attract NBA-level talent. Fringe NBA talent? Yes. But if you have NBA dreams, you're not dreaming of taking a Notre Dame course load, which brings us to...Blake Wesley.

Jim Tal, Valley Center CA.

1:26

Tom, how surprised are you that so few players from Brey's tenure have been able to make any sort of impact at the NBA level? Yes, there have been plenty that have carved out solid careers in foreign countries but here in the States, not so much. Also, given where he's at now and being given very little playing time, wouldn't Blake Wesley have been better served by returning for another year at ND? Yeah, the money was there but I can't help but think he wasn't anywhere near ready for the demands of the NBA.

Thomas Noie

1:18

Bill: Steve Vasturia tried the whole overseas thing for a few years. Hear he's now working on Wall Street. Putting that Notre Dame degree to use. Notre Dame is always going to need those good college guard guys, but the occasional pro prospect wouldn't hurt either!

Bill

1:17

Tom- How is Steve Vasturia doing? I always thought he was one of the those glue guys. Probably my favorite ND basketball player in my 40 plus years watching ND hoops. . Made a lot of big shots. Jay Bilas once described him as a great college guard. I am hoping Coach Shrewsberry attracts more players like him.

Thomas Noie

1:17

John: Wait, come around on Micah being a superstar? Huh? What did I miss? It's like a movie that everyone tells you is so great that you have to see it. You don't know about it ... UNTIL YOU SEE IT!

Same goes for Micah - forget what others say, you need to see it for yourself. Right? Now we see.

John

1:14

Tom- Glad to see you have come around to Shrewsberry being a Superstar. The guy gets it and is incredibly well respected in industry. Read somewhere (maybe ACC preview) that Penn St screwed up big time in letting a generational coach go by not locking him up earlier. I would agree. In his PC last night he mentioned guys didnt want to be apart of the build that left, was he speaking of Starling, VAL, and Campbell? Out of those three, do you think he would have kept all of them around? Also- any news on 2025 recruits? Thanks for the chat!

Thomas Noie

1:07

Joe: TBD because the other team didn't have any bigs. It was hard to get a read on anyone beyond Njie, who's established himself as a main guy because he best knows the system, and his role. But 12 points and three rebounds in 17 minutes from Zona? We'll take that.

Joe Migas

1:05

Thought Zona was very active yesterday compared to the other "Bigs" how do you see playing time shaking out for the big guys???

Thomas Noie

1:05

It becomes handler by committee. Logan Imes can initiate the offense. Braeden Shrewsberry can handle. Tae Davis can handle. Julian Roper if needed. Let's get away from the "glue guy" label and go with Davis being a "trust guy" in that Micah Shrewsberry leans on Davis because he trusts he's going to play the right way. He knows who he is. He's a needed guy.

Wadelite

1:03

Who is the primary ball handler if Burton is not on the floor and is Tae Davis a proverbial glue guy?

Thomas Noie

12:52

Amen!

Ray

12:52

Hi Tom. Shrewsberry iniherited a mess from Brey and obviously it will take at least two to three years for us to be thinking about dancing in March. There's a good chance most of our best players will be back next year plus we have a good group of players coming in next season. IMO ND will be dancing next season and will be a consistent tournament team again. IMO there's two keys for this season. We need to show consistent improvement and to play good defense. Shrewsberry has commented ample times that ND will be a tough team that never gives up and it would be a great sign if we can finish in the top #60 in defense efficiency this year.

Thomas Noie

12:52

Everything else? Welcome to college basketball 2023 and beyond. Mike Brey counseled last year's freshman class to stick it out and give the new guy - whoever it was going to be - a chance before bolting. Not in this day and age. Instead of sticking it out, the three (J.J. Starling, Ven-Allen Lubin and Dom Campbell) ran to the portal. Better to get theirs than to wait around. Same with the three-man recruiting class - Brey said to them, hey. stay patient and see. Only Markus Burton listened. Brady Dunlap and Parker Fredrichsen were like, nope. We're out. So there's five guys that could've stayed but chose to bail. In today's college basketball, when you have immediate transfer eligibility, you go. They all chose to go. It happens.

12:48

Jim: Fair question. I think, though, the stain is to have let everything disintegrate from going 15-5 in the league the previous year to finishing his run at 3-17 and really, giving up in early January. A lot of that is on him - most of it is on him - but the players have to share the blame as to why 2022-23 unfolded the way it did. Remember, they were the ones who talked publicly about how they had the makings of a team that could win the ACC regular-season title. They talked about getting to the Final Four. They were into their feelings after nearly getting to the Sweet 16 the previous year....and we bought it. We bought all of it. Until they realized they didn't know how to win. Or how to take their games to the proverbial next level. To reach their ceilings. When that didn't happen, the ceiling caved in on them...Brey didn't have the heart or the energy to try and fix it, so he's like, yeah, this is it. THAT is the tarnish of his tenure....

Jim Tal, Valley Center CA.

12:45

Greetings Tom. I'd like to take a step back for just a minute or two. In your opinion, how could Mike Brey have allowed the program to fall into such a state of disarray that it was virtually threadbare by the time he left? I mean, one of the reflections of a truly good or great coach is the state in which he leaves the program, and at least on that account, Brey failed in a big way. Simply put, how could he have allowed that to happen? It is a stain that does, to a certain extent, tarnish his otherwise fine record at ND.

Thomas Noie

12:44

IF: Not sure, and not sure it matters. He'll be a four-year program guy who feels like he's been around for a decade. He makes the right play at the right time. He plays. He'll be a really good college guard.

Illinois Fool

12:43

Very impressed by Imes last night. What would you imagine his ceiling will be?

Thomas Noie

12:42

Justin: They play. With poise. With pace. With purpose. Not just stand around the perimeter and pass the ball around. Not told to just go out there and figure it out. They work. It's not the same five guys doing the same five guy things. And just watch Micah Shrewsberry on the sideline for a four-minute segment. Like that's what a head coach at this level is supposed to do.... COACH!

Justin, Ft Wayne

12:41

Happy College Basketball season to you Tom! Curious as to you what you saw last night that makes you excited for this team and season? I’m super excited especially with how last season went. Feels like there’s been some serious new juice in this program.

Thomas Noie

12:39

Bill: Easy. More advanced at this stage of their careers. Why? Easy. Better coached/developed. You got the sense that group was just told to go and play. This group is coached on HOW to play. Big difference.

Bill

12:38

This freshmen class of Burton, Shrewsberry, Imes and Booth. I know you only have had a small sample size to see these guys. How would you compare it to Carmody, Goodwin, Laszewski and Prentiss Hubb. Thanks

Thomas Noie

12:33

Tim: Always good to hear from you. Former Irish assistant coach Antoni Wyche returned to Siena as an assistant while Hamlet Tibbs landed as an assistant coach at Buffalo. Anthony Solomon, who was associate head coach, is not currently on a college basketball staff. He and his wife Tracy, still reside in South Bend.

Tim from Chicago

12:31

Hi Tom, excited that you are back for another year of ND Hoops, nobody does it better. Not a specific question on this year's ND team, but curious, did all of the former Brey assistant coaches last year land on their feet and find other comparable jobs elsewhere in college basketball this season?

Thomas Noie

12:21

Bill: That would be Carey Booth, right? I get it. Rosters needed all the way around. Carey Booth is still figuring out where he fits. Where his game fits. He's so young - he turned 17 in July - that he might not figure it out this year. Offensively, that's OK, just as long as he rebounds the way he did Wednesday (seven rebounds).

Bill

12:19

Is Cam Booth more of a perimeter player? Can he rebound well for his size?

Thomas Noie

12:19

IF: Be better inside? They scored 50 points in the paint. This ain't 1970 where you dump it down to your big man and let him go to work. Game's changed my man. They'll compete in the ACC the way they competed Wednesday - it's a collective, comprehensive effort to defend and get on the glass. Not just have a big guy and say, yeah, you do it. The guards have to defend and rebound. The forwards have to defend and rebound. Lean on a big? Not in this game. Not anymore.

Illinois Fool

12:17

Fun game for the Irish last night even if it was against a D3 school. My worry is the lack of domination inside. If they cannot be better inside, how are they going to compete in the ACC?

Thomas Noie

12:16

Al: Great question. You look back now and see that there were so many small signs that last season was headed in the direction it went. The near-miss home win over Lipscomb, the no-show against Saint Bonaventure on Black Friday. But when Notre Dame was completely undressed at home by Marquette in early December, you kind of sensed that this wasn't going to end well. That it was over. Marquette just came in and took Notre Dame's heart. And the Irish let them. Before that game - which was the John Shumate Ring of Honor game - Mike Brey walked into the arena wearing one of the throwback Shumate jerseys fans were given. Brey made his way to the student section and no one responded. If you watched that you're like, yeah, this run's about over. And then the game started, and it was further proof that the tank was indeed empty. It was over.

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