JotCast | ND Hoops summer chat 2025

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Ryan

10:35

Tom with all the freshman Coming in which will play The most I’m thinking Haralason GO IRISH ☘️☘️☘️☘️🏀🏀🏀

Tom Noie

10:35

Joe: that would be junior guard Logan Imes. I've been one of the few media dopes who has stayed in Imes' corner. There were times last year when Imes would do this or wouldn't do that and someone up there on press row would be like, yep, time for him to transfer. Imes strikes me as one of those program guys who's not caught up in minutes or stats or anything else than being a true team guy. How can he help? What can he do? You could say that he was asked/expected to do too much as a freshman, and at times last year. If he can be a serviceable backup guard who can max out whatever minutes he has, that's Logan Imes. At the end of the day, there's nothing wrong with that.

Guest

10:33

Tom, what do you see Logan? I roll this year with the team. JOE FROM RIVER FOREST, ILLINOIS.

Tom Noie

10:33

Mark: Question Number One for Micah Shrewsberry when it's sit-down time with the media this summer or early fall. Why might we (OK, me) slow-play the notion of getting to the NCAA Tournament this season? This team doesn't have the identity to go and do what it needs to do to get there. Now, if they suddenly find it in summer and show it early in fall, that's a different conversation. But the first step for this program before chasing down its first NCAA Tournament since 2021-22 is to decide ... who are we? We still don't know.

Mark from Rochester, NY

10:31

Irish in year 1 were pesky defensively and then last year forgot how to rebound and guard for the most part while focusing on offense. What is the identity supposed to be this year?

Tom Noie

10:30

Old man standing on his porch and yelling at the clouds time. Not saying you're not wrong, but Notre Dame needs to worry more about the product on the floor before changing the product around the floor.

Guest

10:30

ND men’s basketball would be a more enjoyable experience if they didn’t have a DJ blasting hip-hop music throughout the game. With the poor attendance changing this and lowering the ticket prices would encourage more fans to go to games.

Tom Noie

10:29

Greg: Seeing Notre Dame practice would provide a better answer, but that's not an option. I'm intrigued by what Sir Mohammed can do and can be this season. There's too much there as a Top 50 recruit to just be another guy. He doesn't need to be the main handler with Markus Burton around, but that doesn't mean he can't be a versatile guard/guy who offers something one game, then offers something different the next. NCAA Tournament? Not going down that road, at least not this year. Even in Year Three? Absolutely. You're asking/expecting Notre Dame to make a massive leap and do stuff we've not seen this program do. Louisville? Apples to oranges. Louisville operates in a way that Notre Dame never could. Louisville could rebuild faster through the portal. The portal's not an option for Notre Dame. That's been made clear by who the Irish have/haven't taken, really the last three years. Really, since Paul Atkinson in 2021-22.

Greg from Las Vegas

10:25

Outside of the obvious, who are you betting on being the breakout player this year? And odds of making the NCAA tournament this season? Everyone said it wouldn’t be until year 3 (despite many other schools doing it in one- hello Louisville). Well, year 3 is here for Shrews

Tom Noie

10:24

JIm: The coaching staff will see my "recommendations" and tell me to go pound sand. They've got this. Or, they better have this. They don't need any suggestions from this guy. No big is the transfer portal isn't necessarily news. Notre Dame has needed a capable big for the last two years. If it hasn't happened yet, it's not going to happen. Find another way. Ahneman will need time, just as Ghana Solongo at 7-foot-1 will need time.

Jim, Charlottesville VA

10:22

Hello all! Tom, Niie has often played with stiff hands and grounded feet. Ahnerman: Freshman. What did you make of Shrewsberry not signing a capable Big from the Transfer Portal? The rest of the roster is filled with skilled players who had complete games in High School. How do you recommend the Coach and Staff proceed in developing them competitively in College?

Tom Noie

10:22

Kevin: Great question. Let's go with an A, B, C and D or 1, 2, 3, 4. Notre Dame will be better in 2025-26 because Jalen Haralson is as good as advertised as a possible one-and-done. One element Notre Dame has lacked is that of a connector. Haralson can be that. Burton can make an initial pass to Haralson, who will have the dreaded Basketball IQ to just know whether he should make the next pass to someone for an open shot or finish on his own. Haralson's No. 1. Number 2 is Mohammed, who has the makings of being the ultimate wild card kind of a guard. He can handle. He can facilitate. He can make the extra pass. He can score. He can defend. Most of all, he has to stay healthy, something that torpedoed his freshman season. Number 3 is coaching - enough of the high ball screens and read. Loosen the reigns and let basketball players be basketball players, which leads to No. 4 - a more balanced attack. We've seen Markus Burton be a scorer. Let's see him be a true point guard. It's time.

Kevin, Lemont

10:18

If we are better next year will it be primarily because of better coaching or which one of the following: more balanced attack for Burton; addition of Towt; breakout by Haralson; growth of Mohammed? Loved your top25 articles, thought Carter would be higher

Tom Noie

10:08

Colin: Maybe one more, not counting Nick Shrewsberry, who will be a senior at South bend Saint Joseph and will be one of the top players in the area. Shrewsberry is one of those prospects who can be added anytime (for obvious reasons).

Colin

10:06

With 2 prospects committed in the 2026 Class, how many total commitments should we be looking for in that class? Nick Shrewsberry next on that list?

Tom Noie

10:05

Mark: No pressure? No heat? I disagree based only on this clip from Shrewsberry's presser following the loss to Louisville. (Here: https://tinyurl.com/5n72x4us). That's not somebody who's like, yeah, there's no pressure on me to win. There is. Some of it comes from within - a lot of it comes from within. Shrewsberry is the one who said during his introductory presser in March 2022 that he believes Notre Dame can win a national championship. He went out on that limb. Nobody nudged him. This was going to be, at least, four years, before the program might be in a position to be an NCAA Tournament team. Pete Bevacqua has given Shrewsberry his support, but he also has to give him something else. Time. That said, don't be fooled into thinking Shrewsberry's on Easy Street in 25-26. Goes back to what we discussed earlier. It's time to see and show progress. If that doesn't happen this year, when will it?

Mark from Rochester, NY

9:58

Tom, thanks for doing this as always. With a new AD in the fold and basketball taking a backseat, is there any real pressure on Shrews to win in Year 3? I feel like his bosses haven’t turned up the heat enough. I understand it was supposed to be a long rebuild but going backwards last year had to change things.

Tom Noie

9:51

Mike: Pat may have a chance to come up for air sometime in April. Asking him now how he's settling into his role is like asking that married couple how they like marriage - barely a month in. They don't know what they don't know. Garrity likely is in the same boat - he still doesn't know what he doesn't know. Every day is different. Especially in that role.

Mike from Rochester, NY

9:49

Have you heard from Pat Garrity outside of the initial presser to see how he's settling into his role?

Tom Noie

9:49

It had a chance to move into the top eight or the top seven or the top whatever. It let so many league games get away. A Top Five finish this year? That's a big ask for a program that has one top five finish (2021-22) since 2017.

9:48

Peter: Can the Atlantic Coast Conference get any worse? Of course it can. The league's been on a downward trajectory the last few years, but look at the exodus of coaches - Tony Bennett, Rick Pitino, Mike Krzyzewski, Roy Williams, Jim Boeheim, Jim Larranaga, and that Brey guy who took Notre Dame to places it had no business being. Duke was able to make the transition from K to Jon Scheyer relatively seamless, but it's hard for all those other programs to reboot. The ACC also suffers from group think. One or two or three national voices bashes the ACC and pretty soon, everyone's bashing the league. It needs a national voice to champion the league in January and February and March. It doesn't have that. Instead, it has mediocre basketball, which made last season that much more frustrating. Notre Dame had a chance.

Peter

9:44

Is the ACC projected to be improved this year? It's kind of embarrassing how bad the league has become. As it stands, I would think ND would need to finish in the top 5 to even be considered for the tourny.

Tom Noie

9:41

Bill: What tournament?

Bill

9:40

Is this a tournament team

Tom Noie

9:40

Dom Campbell was a power forward from Maine who played his freshman year at Notre Dame, transferred to Howard (I see you Rod Balanis!) and played two seasons. He played in the NCAA Tournament his first season with the Bison. Campbell recently committed to Central Florida ... to play football. It's an odd choice in so many ways, the first of which is ...he's never really played football. At 6-foot-9, 268 pounds, he's got the build to be a future offensive lineman/tight end, but he's also had a history of concussions - at Notre Dame and at Howard. How is that going to work playing a game where you're banging heads with someone on every single play? Why UCF? Campbell's family relocated in recent years to Orlando, so there's that. Campbell's younger brother, Demetrius, is a freshman offensive lineman at Miami (Fla.) Maybe Dom Campbell saw his brother have success in that sport and thought, yeah, I'll give that a try. Other than his size, there's really nothing about him that says he can make that transition.

Clint, Winnipeg

9:36

Can you explain the Dom Campbell switch to football and transfer to UCF? Was he that underwhelming in basketball at ND and Howard?

Tom Noie

9:35

Ray: That's OK. There are reasons for your skepticism. Nobody looks at Notre Dame as it is currently constructed and says, yep, tournament team. Small steps this year - all the steps we expected to see from the program last year, steps that I outlined in an earlier post, maybe we see them this year. It's obvious based on who Notre Dame has taken out of the portal even the last three years that the portal is not going to be an option. You can build it a different way, as long as you build it the right way.

Ray

9:33

Hi Tom this is Ray from Southern California. I'm trying to stay positive but I don't see any realistic way that the Irish are dancing this year. Logic suggested they needed to pick up at least two power 5 starters in the portal and they pretty much picked up 0.

Tom Noie

9:33

Matt: Pat Garrity is a home-run hire in so many ways, though I would be concerned that he will wear the GM hat for BOTH programs. How will he divide his attention while giving both programs his undivided attention? That's a 100-hour a week job. Notre Dame women's basketball deserves its own GM (I see you, Natalie Achonwa). Until then, Garrity will be a voice of reason in so many ways. He's Example 1 of what Notre Dame basketball players still can be - on and off the court.

Matt,

9:31

Tom, not sure who wanted Pat Garrity to be the GM. But, what a great call. When they talk about developing players. He is a great voice for that. I hope we keep our recruits. Make 3* a 4* and get us to where we used to be. Go Irish!

Tom Noie

9:30

Tony: Prior to the commitments of Jonathan Sanderson (read about him here: https://tinyurl.com/2zdtwn6n) and Ghana Solongo (here: https://tinyurl.com/yh5ecyth) the thinking was that Notre Dame would sign a three-man class for 2026. It might go to four if you assume (and we all know what happens when we assume) that Nick Shrewsberry will be part of that class. As for the transfer portal, look at this season's transfers - Carson Towt from Northern Arizona and Matthew MacLellan from NAIA Madonna. The portal is not going to be an option at the front end of the roster. Back end? Yes.

Tony

9:25

Tom, it seems that coach Shrews is sticking to his plan of building the program through the high school recruiting. The new S+C coach sure did help. How many more do you think he will want for the 2026 class? If would transfer or go to the NBA. Do you think he will use the portal much?

Tom Noie

9:25

What is progress? It's not necessarily tied into Notre Dame's won/loss record or place in the standings or pursuit of an NCAA Tournament bid. Progress will be turning Purcell Pavilion into a homecourt advantage. Progress will be winning a game here or there that Notre Dame has no business winning. It will be stringing together three or four good weeks, not three or four good games, of high-level basketball. It will be going on the road and winning a league game that it shouldn't win. It will be holding its own against a ranked team(s). It will be the fan base leaving Purcell Pavilion regardless of a win or a loss and saying, OK, I see where this is all going. We see progress in those areas, we'll see progress in the other areas of wins and losses and league standings and, deep breath, NCAA Tournament dreams.

9:21

Bill: Only if he's sitting on it somewhere outside Rolfs Hall the past few days, where it's been brutal even by Northern Indiana standards the last week. Just kidding. Any temperature change Shrewsberry feels from his chair comes from within. It's been a rough go the first two years for myriad reasons, but Shrewsberry is the first to tell you that he believes in his system, believes he'll win, believes that better days are ahead. Knowing that, this is a big year for him. Not to win x amount of games or get to the top of the ACC standings or get back to the NCAA Tournament. All of that matters, and matters a lot. but this is a big year because Notre Dame needs to show something it didn't last season. Progress.

Bill

9:18

Is Shrewsberry on the hot seat

Tom Noie

9:17

Mike: We usually get a sneak peek of hoops at the end of summer school, which is still a couple of weeks out. It's there that you can finally see how the pieces to the puzzle fit. Like, OK, that guy can offer something sooner than later or that guy is going need much of the year to adjust to the speed and size of college basketball. There continues to be great optimism around the sophomore class, which could be key to this season. Jalen Haralson is expected to play a major role from the jump, but if that sophomore class of Certa, Mohammed and Sundra can hit, this season will carry even more intrigue. None of those three were ready this time last year. Second time around, that can be a different story.

Mike from Rochester, NY

9:15

Any rumblings about summer standouts among the freshman and sophomore groups?

Tom Noie

9:14

Dave: A great summer question to ponder. As of June 26, it seems that four of the starting five spots are pretty solid - Markus Burton at point guard, Braeden Shrewsberry at shooting guard, Jalen Haralson at wing guard and Kebba Njie at power forward. From there, we're kind of in a gray area. How gray? To borrow a line from Fletch....charcoal...That fifth spot offers some intrigue. Maybe it goes to Garrett Sundra, who can give the Irish a true stretch four. Maybe it goes to Sir Mohammed, who can be a jack-of-all-trades kind of perimeter guy. Maybe Micah Shrewsberry floods the floor with shooting and tabs Cole Certa to pick up where he left off last season. Maybe graduate transfer Carson Towt, with his effort and energy, is someone who just has to be on the floor. This season, with this roster, the staff has something it didn't have the first two years. Options.

D9 Dave

9:10

What is your projected starting 5 for next season for the Irish & your projection for how they will finish in the standings of the ACC?

Tom Noie

9:10

Patrick: We can hope, can't we?

Let's start here - Markus Burton is a special talent who has done stuff that few thought he could do at this level. He's been an All-Atlantic Coast Conference guard his first two seasons. He's had stretches where he's carried this team offensively. Sometimes, it seemed last season, that it was put the ball in Burton's hands and let him figure it out. Sometimes, he did. But for Notre Dame to do more, for Notre Dame to be more, it needs more offensively than just Burton scoring and Burton driving and Burton decision-making and Burton shouldering most of the load. Maybe that happens this season with the arrival of Jalen Haralson. Maybe that happens this season with the experience of the returning guys. Maybe Micah Shrewsberry can better zero in on what this team and what it isn't and can create better/more scoring options. More drive and kicks. More dives to the rim. More second chances. More guys who can go and get a bucket. Then we can truly see Burton at his best.

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