JotCast | Notre Dame Men's Basketball May chat

Notre Dame Men's Basketball May chat

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Thomas Noie

12:53

Wade: On May 20, I'm going with Blake Wesley, for myriad reasons. I'm not sold that J.R. Konieczny will remain a guard. Mike Brey says he is and his high school coach, Mark Johnson, says he is, but he seems to have future stretch-four written all over him than perimeter guy. Wesley's skill set better suits this team next season - especially his ability to get after it....wait for it....defensively. And he can handle. There was one game I watched Wesley play this season where teams tried to press and trap him and he beat it with the dribble, then shredded remaining defenders with look-away passes to teammates. Those passes were fumbled away, but at the ACC level, those are dunks for other guys. And not sure Dane Goodwin was as much of a "disaster" on the defensive backboard. He finished with 134 defensive rebounds - behind only Laszewski and Durham. I'll take that 5.5 rebounding average any day. Now, getting in a stance, that's a whole different story....

Wadelite Long Beach, CA

12:49

Which frosh plays more this season? I know the level of play they faced in high school was not the strongest for a jump to the ACC. I'm also worried that we will see Goodwin playing 15 mpg at the 4 spot and that will again be a disaster defensively and on the boards.

Thomas Noie

12:42

Erik: If all gets back to normal, its summer school (usually two classes) and workouts and a heavy dose of evening pickup with conditioning in mornings. The team did zero of that last year, which is a crusher for a program that values the offseason the way Notre Dame does. Summer's a time for the main guys to learn how to be main guys together, something that never happened last year.

Erik (Granger, IN)

12:40

What does the team’s summer schedule look like this year?

Thomas Noie

12:40

Wade: Yes, yes, yes all across the board. Since you mentioned a step-back 3 with 20 seconds on the shit clock, let's use Prentiss Hubb as an example. Yeah, poor shot, poorer possession. That quick 3 may lead to a run-out and easy basket by the other team which tops out a 10-0 run against Notre Dame. Mike Brey calls timeout, but the head coach has 10 different scenarios running though his melon and doesn't have the time to jump his point guard for the decision. Nobody on last year's staff likely would either. Now with Solomon, you have someone who can pull Hubb to the side and explain the bigger picture of that decision to where he's better next time. The guards under Ryan Ayers were just kind of there. That shouldn't be the case with Anthony Solomon. Ask Jerian Grant and Demetrius Jackson.

Wadelite Long Beach, CA

12:36

Tom, it seems like overall guard play has declined since Solomon and Ingelsby left. I always assumed Ingelsby had more to do with the guards, but perhaps Solomon will be an asset to improve the level of play, such as being able to break a press or shot selection (step back treys with 20 seconds left on the shot clock).

Thomas Noie

12:36

Tom: It's not just Notre Dame, but it's all of college basketball and how teams operate in terms of roster management/construction/recruiting. Say you're Notre Dame and you need to start thinking about who gets the ball when Prentiss Hubb moves on. You need a future starting point guard. Do you invest time and energy and effort into recruiting a traditional high school kid who might sign with you? Then he does, but then, a veteran guard who liked you coming out of high school hits the portal and can play immediately and will have the ball in his hands. He'll make you better the minute he commits. How do you recruit? High school kids? Portal kids? Both? It's a circus now and will get even worse moving forward.

Tom in South Bend

12:33

How do you expect the "no sit-out" transfer rule to affect ND? There are already about 60% more transfers in the portal last. Here's what I epect.this year than

Thomas Noie

12:26

Still is. You mean as a coach in waiting? Little different with a guy with zero specific school ties (Wojo and Notre Dame) and Painter being a coach in waiting behind a Hall of Famer AT his alma mater where he also played. Wojo went 128-95 with zero NCAA tournament wins at Marquette. THAT'S what you want for the next coach at Notre Dame? Really?

joe from the south side

12:24

Tom: See Matthew Curtis Painter. Not so funny now, is it?

Thomas Noie

12:23

Danny: I'm a big Barnaby's downtown guy. Better than Rocco's. Yep. I said it. Never got Rocco's. It's just kind of, meh....Prove me wrong. If not Barnaby's, then Bruno's. No Bruno's? I'm hopping on the Toll Road and getting Malnati's. Gotta get my Chicago fix somehow.

Danny

12:21

Non related sports question to switch it up. Best pizza place around ND in your opinion?

Thomas Noie

12:21

Ed: Always, but that was pre-COVID. One of the toughest aspects of this job is I feel I don't KNOW these guys because I haven't been able to sit with them and just talk hoops. Not everything is reporter-player interview stuff. Best part of it is turning the recorder off and just talking....maybe giving a guy grief for a missed dunk or something or a moment that we might have in common. Once guys know you, they trust you. I don't know any of these guys outside of Zoom. That's a big drawback.

Ed, Greensboro

12:19

Tom, are you ever able to interview players one on one to get their thoughts, on or off the record, or is that a no-no?

Thomas Noie

12:19

Joe: Trust me, the whip will be cracked. The accountability level goes up 10-fold just with Anthony Solomon back on the staff.

joe from the south side

12:19

Tom: You know, for all the flack Brey takes, some deservedly so, let's put this in perspective. In general, the ACC gets as much or more NBA talent as any league. When Roy was at NC, you had 3 HOF coaches in one league! The ACC schedule does ND no favors. 3 games in 8 days, two on the road, and two of the 3 are Duke and FSU. The refs certainly do them no help. The school does not back Brey like it does Kelly. And Brey really has STUDENT athletes on his squad. That is a mountain to climb every year. Where he needs to improve is recruiting more athletes, and he needs to instill some fight in the dog. From my point of view, it looks like there is no down side to playing sloppy D, or having a poor shooting night, or not fighting on the boards. I think he, or Anthony S, really needs to crack the whip, and if you piss off somebody, so be it.

Thomas Noie

12:18

Clint: Juwan Durham has hired an agent and will pursue his professional basketball options.

Clint from Winnipeg

12:18

Have you heard anything on what Juwan Durham is going to be doing? Playing professionally overseas?

Thomas Noie

12:18

Erik: If I'm Anthony Solomon - I see you Slo! - I'm selling this - doing it the way you did it the last three years got you next to nowhere. Do it this way, and you might be able to dream those NCAA tourney dreams. It might not be in them, but it won't be for a lack of effort on Solomon's part.

Erik (Granger, IN)

12:16

Do you expect guys who have never really been held accountable in three years to respond to Coach Solomon’s tough love or do you think it could fall on deaf ears (too little too late?)?

Thomas Noie

12:16

Joe: Currently picking myself up off the floor. Might not be able to continue after that one. That statement is similar to the guy who was wondering if Monty Williams would leave the NBA for Notre Dame - once an NBA coach, always an NBA coach. Same goes for head coaches like Wojo - once a head coach, hard to accept that assistant's chair.

joe from the south side

12:14

Tom: BTW, you laughed at me Part 2. Wojo is out there. Played for Brey at Duke. Catholic boy from the DC area. Head coaching experience. 44 years old. I say coach in waiting. BTW huge step down for MARQ hiring Shaka.

Thomas Noie

12:14

Ed: Just tap into what this team and these guys can be. It's frustrated him that he hasn't been able to do that for the last three years, but there's a part of him that still believes there's more to unlock with them and that they can be really good. No NCAAs for five years running would be tough to ignore moving forward, though I thought that the case with three and four years....

Ed, Greensboro

12:13

Tom , great to be back. Aside from Solomon, what changes will Brey need to make to get this group going? Also, I have the feeling this is his last season if we do not make the tournament.Thoughts? Thanks

Thomas Noie

12:12

Clint: Quick rundown of the main guys and what they need to improve on: Prentiss Hubb (leadership), Dane Goodwin (perimeter consistency), Nate Laszewski (counter when teams smother him), Trey Wertz (feel, motor), Cormac Ryan (perimeter consistency), Paul Atkinson (feel for ACC), Matt Zona (presence), Tony Sanders (feel, motor).

Clint from Winnipeg

12:10

Can you quickly run through the main rotation guys from last season and tell us in what area(s) each could realistically improve his game heading into 2021-22?

Thomas Noie

12:08

Clint: Sure, just as I kept an eye on what Chris Doherty did at Northeastern last year, and what D.J. Harvey did last year at Vanderbilt and will do this year at Detroit Mercy. They're still Notre Dame guys to an extent. That doesn't change because they decide to go somewhere else.

Clint from Winnipeg

12:07

Will you be keeping an eye on what Nikola Djogo does next season at Northeastern?

Thomas Noie

12:07

God Bless his soul, but that's Rick Majerus being Rick Majerus. Easy to recruit to Notre Dame? Yeah, not seeing it. Takes a special kind of kid who embraces the academic/athletic combo. And let's stop comparing how hoops recruits to how football recruits. Programs are just a litttttttttle different, no?

Jack/Pa

12:05

We all know Brey can coach. What kind of spark is needed to jump start recruiting? Rick Majerus said he thought it would be easy to recruit at ND, and we seem to recruit well in just about every other sport.

Thomas Noie

12:05

Todd: TBD. Energy and effort greatly needed. How that fits/translates to the Atlantic Coast Conference will be determined only by game minutes.

Todd S in Asheville, NC

12:04

What's the word on the contribution that Elijah Taylor will provide in 21-22? Heard lots of good things about him.

Thomas Noie

12:04

TJ: Have you forgot about or don't know about Paul Atkinson? The Yale transfer and former Ivy League Player of the Year will be the starting five. Nate Laszewski and Elijah Taylor at the power forward spot and Zona likely bouncing between both spots as the backup. As for timing, we're about to go to a whole new editing system at the Tribune next week. The kinks will take most of the summer to work out. It's chat this week or maybe not chat again until September. I'm only half-joking on that. Have questions, comments, concerns, better get them in today!

Toledo Johnny from Georgia

12:02

Hi Tom. This is strange timing, but happy to see it. Will Nate be our #5 (post) and will Zona be good enough to sub...or will Nate be our #4 and Zona our starting #5? How will Elijah Taylor fit in here?

Thomas Noie

12:02

X: Depends on your definition of "anything." Major minutes and a big run of double doubles for points and rebounds? Probably not. Spot minutes and a glimpse that there's something there and just needs time? Maybe.

xmustico

12:01

Should we expect anything out of Elijah Taylor this year?

Thomas Noie

12:01

Tim: I think they just want to hear something from me to be honest....LOL...every time I underestimate the Notre Dame hoops crowd, they prove me wrong.

Tim from Chicago

12:01

Hi Tom, I'm a regular visitor to these chats during the season and wasn't planning on dropping in today, but your tweet said the question queue is jam packed and I was wondering what big news I may have missed since the season ended a couple months back. Are people really that excited about a new assistant coach on a team that hasn't made the tournament in four years?

Thomas Noie

12:00

Danny: Dane Goodwin already has let it be known that he's interested in a fifth year. I can see Cormac Ryan and Trey Wertz also leaning that way. Robby Carmody too, though with an asterisk. If he eventually becomes odd man out, he may consider going somewhere as a grad transfer if playing time is paramount. As for Prentiss Hubb and Nate Laszewski, if both have the seasons they're supposed to have, it might be time to make a run at pro ball. Whatever and wherever that may be.

Danny/Chicago

11:58

Hey Tom, if you had to guess of the 6 seniors with eligibility to return the following year, how many do you actually see coming back?

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