JotCast | ND hoops chat - October

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Thomas Noie

11:15

Paul: You'd think so, right? Though Notre Dame had two local kids on the roster last season - Blake Wesley and J.R. Konieczny. A quick quiz - first time two local kids at Notre Dame since Demetrius Jackson and Austin Torres in 2015-16...how many home sellouts do you think there were? Notre Dame played 15 home games and had...TWO sellouts (Duke and Georgia Tech). This for a program that won a school record 15 league games and 24 overall and got back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in four years. Yeah, think I'll go the you and 2.500 close friends. Still a fickle home crowd bunch. I'm sure somebody somewhere will muster an excuse as to why.

Paul, here in the Bend

11:11

An unusual situation in that our local kid was one and done. With that and the positive NCAA experience, do you think that has any positive impact putting butts in the seats this year? Or the typical me and 2,500 of my closest friends for most games?

Thomas Noie

11:03

Joe: Nailed it. Starling's good and he knows it and everybody else knows it, but he doesn't feel the need to have to show it every single possession. He doesn't have the ball going down the floor? That's cool. No shot that trip? That's fine as well. Then you look up and he makes a steal or a pass or a shot and it makes you go, whoa, yeah, that guy's good. I love his pace. He just plays. No flash. Just focus. It will be fun to watch him.

joe from the south side

11:02

Tom, Is it me or does JJS remind you a little bit of Walt Frazier? Clyde was not the biggest guy on the court or the flashiest, or the fastest, but always the smoothest. You watched the Knicks and Willis has his 20 and 10. Earl the Pearl with all of the Shake and Bake. And there was Frazier. Unflappable. Want me to run point? No problem. Need 25 points? Done. Need 5 assists, 2 steals and 3 or 4 boards? Mark it down. I always thought his best quality was that he didn't impose on the game; he waited until the game came to him, then picked his spots. I see that in JJS' game and in his attitude. Let me figure out what you need me to do tonight and I'll have it ready for you. DO you sense that? Is my read correct?

Thomas Noie

11:01

Joe: Duly noted, though I will be ready and willing to knock out a quick commit story tonight at 8...all the while thinking, man, Joe don't know nothing if he chooses Notre Dame...

joe from the south side

11:00

Tom, FWIW, Elmarko's going to Kansas. I think the ND visit was polite and completed his offficials, but I had ND third behind Kansas and Miami. Defending National champs, and Larranaga was on him first. Brey had an uphill battle. I hope I am wrong.

Thomas Noie

11:00

Jeff: Love Marcus Hammond, but it took a while to get there and figure out exactly where he fits. He was the one guy I was still unsure of when we saw the open practice in October. Specifically, what are his skills? Where does he fit? How does what he does translate to what this program likes to do? Watching individual drills, Marcus Hammond doesn't stand out. He's just kind of there. Then when it's time to play, it all comes into focus. You can see why he was a good get. He just plays. Has a swagger about him. A toughness. Like, I'm going here and I'm going there and you can't stop me. He's a basketball player with a New York City mentality. Get down the floor, get into the lane, get going. I left that day thinking, OK, I get it with Marcus Hammond. He's good.

Jeff

10:58

Hey Tom, what have you seen from Marcus Hammond this off-season? Looks like another guy who can shoot it to me!

Thomas Noie

10:57

Justin: I'm all for it, and believe they'll get back in there (maybe after beating Michigan State at home in yet another ACC/Big Ten Challenge), but if it were up to Mike Brey, he'd prefer everyone to sleep on his squad. Don't think I agree. Everyone did that last year, and it allowed Notre Dame to sneak up on everyone and go 15-5, but had the season gone another two days, the Irish would've missed the tournament because of a lack of buzz. Nobody took them seriously. It's time to take this group seriously. Top 25 seriously.

Justin, Ft. Wayne

10:56

Hey Tom! I think this the year we see the Irish back in the AP top 25. What are thoughts on that?

Thomas Noie

10:56

Adam: Early returns, nothing but good stuff. On the floor. On the recruiting trail. In the staff meetings. A fresh voice. A young voice. A hungry voice. From the practice we saw Oct. 1, Tibbs spent time working with the bigs alongside associate head coach Anthony Solomon while Antoni Wyche had the guards. He's not the most vocal guy, at least from what we saw, but that will come as he learns the lay of the hoops land over there.

Adam

10:53

What have you heard about Hamlet Tibbs and how he has been able to integrate so far? How does it appear the responsibilities will be distributed among the assistants?

Thomas Noie

10:48

Mike: Wait, Notre Dame isn't going nine and 10 deep this season? Really? Now I kid, I kid. Wesley was the bigger impact guy because it had been so long since Notre Dame actually had a talent like that. He was really good, but really raw. He kind of grew into everything as the season evolved. He became an all-league guy and first-round pick. But there's no doubt that J.J. Starling, at the same point as Blake Wesley was last year, is the better basketball player. The more all-around, well-rounded player. Watching him in July and then again in October, he just made plays and reads that Wesley didn't make at a similar point. He's got an overall better feel, while Wesley was the better athlete who figured it out as he went. Turned out OK for him...

Mike from PA

10:45

Tom - when will Brey finally listen to the armchair coaches and go 9-10 deep??? (I kidd, I kidd). Serious question, a few chats ago I asked who would make a bigger impact, Starling or Wesley. Your answer was Wesley because that team was really set up for him to come in and make an impact. I'm going to simplify the question this time. Who is the better basketball player?

Thomas Noie

10:45

Ryan: Let's go with a top-five finish in the Atlantic Coast Conference with double-digit league wins and a trip to the Sweet 16 at the least. It's hard to see a path to an ACC tournament title, until we see what Duke and North Carolina and Virginia and Virginia Tech look like. Then, who's the team from nowhere like Wake Forest last season?

Ryan mars pa

10:44

Tom what do you think about the team going into the season go Irish i think they have a shot at maybe winning acc go Irish

Thomas Noie

10:40

Marc: I believe Mike Brey learned his lesson from 2018-19 when he had no choice but to turn it all over to a freshman recruiting class that was highly ranked but nowhere near ready to withstand the rigors of the Atlantic Coast Conference. That group was promptly taken apart to the tune of 3-15 in the league. Markus Burton and Parker Friedrichsen and Brady Dunlap will be good, but not they're not good enough to step into major roles as freshmen. Some of them will play early, but you can't expect a big role. Have to learn how to walk before they can run. Especially in this league. Let's say J.J. Starling and Ven-Allen Lubin both are back for 2023-24. The starting five might look like this - J.J. Starling, J.R. Konieczy, Matt Zona, Ven-Allen Lubin and a piece to be named later. Maybe a transfer. Maybe a transfer big. Too early to say on so many fronts. Let's just enjoy this ride first!

Marc

10:36

Hi Tom, Thank you so much for doing these! I'm sure you're going to get tons of questions on this year's rotation, so I won't repeat that. What do you think the rotation will be for the opener November 2023? I'm looking forward to this year's team, the sky is the limit, but I am concerned for 2023. I remember Laz, Goodwin, Hubb, etc all starting as freshman and that wasn't pretty. The incoming recruiting class next season looks great for the program long term, but counting on them to carry the load could be scary.

Thomas Noie

10:35

Marty: We touched on the defensive numbers earlier in the chat - fourth in scoring defense, third in field goal percentage, second in 3-point field goal percentage in conference games. Don't know how much better those numbers can get from this group. As long as there's no slippage to when they were indifferent about guarding, they should be good. Keep those defensive numbers where they're at and make a concerted team effort to gang rebound. Don't leave it up to one or two guys. Everyone get on the glass. The offense still is going to flow pretty easily. Stay committed to defense. Got to.

Marty

10:33

ND made significant strides in improving their defense last year — can we expect further improvement this year? I recall Brey making a point that he dedicated additional defense practice time and allowed his assistants to run the defense drills

Thomas Noie

10:33

Morgan: Thanks for the question. Not that high of a demand for a skinny 5-foot-11 point guard on the means streets of the Mid-Suburban League, but basketball remained a big part of my youth. So was football. And baseball. But I just gravitated more toward hoops. Pickup? I was there. Evenings outside at the playground? I'd shoot for hours. Just something about having a ball in my hands and a basket. Still try to get out and get a hoops run in today, even at 54. Not a big football guy. Or a baseball guy. But hoops? It's always been hoops. Always will be.

Morgan McKinley

10:30

Tom - What’s your athletic and basketball playing history? Did you play hoops in high school? Other sports?

Thomas Noie

10:24

Dennis: Robby Carmody will be a main guy this season for Notre Dame, but not in the main guy traditional sense. He's likely not going to play meaningful minutes or see any time in the rotation. He's become more of a coach/counselor in the program. A strong voice. A positive voice. Someone to talk other guys through the rough spots. He missed too much time dealing with injuries that playing at this level is unlikely. Doesn't mean he can't contribute - just in other ways.

Dennis Huyvaert Osceola

10:22

Hi Tom , I see that Robby Carmody is on the roster . Will he be healthy enough to contribute anything ? I am rooting for him .

Thomas Noie

10:22

Matt: Comparing Mike Brey to Jim Boeheim...he'd love that. Not so much....lol. He's definitely on the proverbial back nine of his coaching career. Those four years where Notre Dame didn't get to the NCAA tournament took a lot out of him, to the point where it is a surprise that he's still around. He seemingly reached a point where he wondered if his message was still being received during those years - he tried everything and nothing really worked. It got him wondering if that was it. The last couple years have helped him recharge and refocus for one more run, though how long that run winds up being is anyone's guess. He may decide to go another five, 10 years, or may decide that, yeah, I've had enough. He's not there yet.

Matt from Virginia

10:19

Tom, thanks for these chats. Hoops season is around the corner - can't wait! From your feel for the program, do you think Mike Brey is close to retirement, or do you see him as a Jim Boeheim type who loves it so much that he won't be able to pull himself away (i.e. he'll ride it out for as long as he can)? And do you think uncertainty about how much time he has left affects recruiting?

Thomas Noie

10:11

Joe: From suspect to shaky to solid. You had to wonder where all of this was going when Markus Burton - the local guy - was the lone commit through summer and part of the fall evaluation period. Adding Dunlap and Friedrichsen were solid additions. And like you said, program guys who can grow their games and develop. I think it's a little better - with better potential - than the Zona, Taylor, Sanders class, which was cobbled together during a pandemic. It's no secret that there will be at least six subtractions from this year's roster. Cormac Ryan has a sixth year option if he chooses, but if this season goes the direction it's supposed to go, he's not returning. Nor should he. The key next year is what happens with Starling, and to an extent Lubin. That's where it gets dicey as far as next year's roster. Both have the potential to be one-and-done guys. Maybe one is. Maybe neither are.

joe from the south side

10:08

Tom, What are your thoughts so far on the new recruiting class? Here is what it looks like to me. Brey knows he is losing 6, or more, players in all likelihood. That said, if everyone else stays, he has only 6 scholarship players. With the 3 he has, not counting Elmarko, he has to build a core around which to maintain the program. If you look at Markus, Parker and Brady, all three of those kids project to be multi-year guys at ND. Not only from a talent standpoint, but from a size issue as well. All 3 kids will need to bulk up to play in the ACC. I think this is a class kind of like Zona, Sanders and Taylor. Not the most heralded, but more like foundation guys for the program. Your thoughts?

Thomas Noie

10:04

Joe: You are 900 percent correct. Cormac Ryan and Dane Goodwin and Nate Laszewski didn't come back to be even better in the Atlantic Coast Conference - how do you top 15-5? Can you? They didn't come back because yeah, that Master's from the Business school is going to look really good on the resume one day. They came back to take this a step further than they went last year. They tasted the NCAA tournament. They want more. They truly believe they can do more. And they should. They're three fifth-year guys who have done a lot in college. They know the drill. They know how to pace themselves. They know how to get to March. Now go do it. As for Mike Brey, given what we've seen the last two offseasons with the retirements of Roy Williams and then Jay Wright coming out of nowhere, never say never. Brey has been adamant that he wants to stay through his current deal (2024-25) and maybe beyond. Does that thinking change? There's always that chance. Slim, but still, a chance.

joe from the south side

10:01

Tom, I sense the attitude around the team is that there is unfinished business from last year. That anything short of two (or more) wins in the Tourney is a bust. If Brey makes a magical run in the tourney, do you think he would bow out on top? He'll be 64 and the only thing missing is a Final Four run as a Head Coach.

Thomas Noie

9:55

Joe: Conspiracy theorists are out early today! Either he was blown away with the Notre Dame visit, or it reinforced his belief that his first choice (whoever that is) is the right choice, right? Usually, I can get a handle from those who are in the know about a prospect's intentions. Jackson's been a tough read. He sure would look nice next to J.J. Starling next season, but we also said the same about Blake Wesley playing alongside Starling this year, remember?

joe from the south side

9:53

Tom, Conincidental that Elmarko Jackson visits South Bend and within a few days schedules a press conference to announce his decision? With all of the graduations at the end of the season, he could coexist with JJS next year, if JJS stays, or just take over the lead guard spot if JJS moves on. Thoughts?

Thomas Noie

9:52

It does and it will. Many of the concerns this year about Notre Dame's interior were similar last season when it came to defense. Can Notre Dame defend? Will it? The Irish then finished fourth in league in scoring defense (66.9 ppg.), third in field goal percentage defense (.426 percent) and second in 3-point field goal percentage defense (.296). Notre Dame knew it had to deliver on that end last season and delivered. Now, go and do it on the interior scoring and rebounding. They'll figure it out.

Guest

9:51

Notre Dame has always had solid perimeter play but do they have the ability to score the ball inside or defend the post?

Thomas Noie

9:46

Bob: It's been difficult to get a read on what Elmarko Jackson is thinking - even from those inside Notre Dame. Those who should know didn't know earlier in the week. Usually, that's not the case. The popular opinion is that it's going to be Kansas, but we'll see. There are no bigs currently on the Irish recruiting big board for 2023. If Notre Dame adds a big to its current recruiting class, it will come via the transfer portal or the 2024 class.

Bob from chicago

9:45

Hi Tom, what are our chances with Elmarko when he decides later today and are we recruiting any bigs for 2023 ?

Thomas Noie

9:42

Joe: How about 7.5?

Guest

9:42

Any chance of an eight-man rotation this year Joe from River Forest Illinois

Thomas Noie

9:42

Shortcomings? It will always be rebounding. There were concerns last year with Paul Atkinson in the post. He was maybe 6-foot-7. He didn't have the longest arms or bounciest of frames, but averaged a team-high 6.9 rebounds. So the Irish always seem to find a way to not get crushed on the backboard. There still will be those nights (we see you North Carolina) but if the Irish can collectively commit to that end, as they did defensively last season, they'll be good.

9:40

Alan: Not so sure about "very good" defensively. Adequate maybe. Notre Dame was way, way better on that end last season, and it translated into an NCAA tournament trip. That defensive bar has been raised. This group has to match that, and maybe a little more. That Nate Laszewski is back is big. He kind of quarterbacks everything on the defensive end back there. Ryan too. Starling and Lubin are athletic enough to be good defenders.

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