JotCast | November 23 Notre Dame men's basketball chat

Prev Page View Full Chat Next Page

Al-Elkhart

12:13

I think we all can agree that the program got stale at the end under Coach Brey. Where did that show itself the most in your opinion?

Thomas Noie

12:13

Al: There are three holdovers from last year's men's basketball staff - Pat Rogers (director of operations), Nixon Dorvillen (trainer) and Jim Fraleigh (men's basketball administrator).

Al-Elkhart

12:12

Who if anyone is left from last year's basketball staff (trainers, etc.)?

Thomas Noie

11:46

Clint: Someone mentioned it earlier so we'll go with it - a lighter version of Martinas Geben. Not necessarily a main guy but a guy who maxes out the chances/minutes that he does get, Like last night - he only played 17 minutes, but he hit a pair of 3s, he moved down low and got a couple buckets. Grabbed a few rebounds. He looked the part of a D-I big. Small steps for the big guy right now.

Clint from Winnipeg

11:45

What does the ceiling look like for Matt Zona?

Thomas Noie

11:44

Rich: They have not, but if I had to spit-ball it, I'd say it would be Matt Zona (team guy) and Kebba Njie (Shrewsberry message guy). Captains this season might be a bit of a stretch. So many different/new/moving pieces.

Rich from Long Island

11:43

Hi Tom. Have captains been named?

Thomas Noie

11:43

Clint: He might already be there. He was reportedly really good at X and he was good last night. He'll have his freshman moments. This is a roster with a lot of steady/heady guys. Burton's the one guy who will make you sit up and say, whoa...that was special.

Clint from Winnipeg

11:42

Who do you think will be (become?) the most dynamic player on the team this season? Is Markus Burton the easy answer?

Thomas Noie

11:41

Sanders is the odd man out. The proverbial, it will be hard to get to him kind of a role. It is what it is.

Todd from Charlotte

11:40

Not much from Tony Sanders last night?

Thomas Noie

11:18

Mike: You have the thought process of a beat writer! I wondered and watched the same and figured it's a story worth pursuing as we move forward. Looking at the bench from where we sit at Purcell Pavilion, it was Tre Witted, Shrewsberry's assistant, to his left and associate head coach Kyle Getter to his right. Then two players and assistant coach Mike Farrelly and Grady Eifert (development and recruiting coordinator) before two more players. Then assistant coach Ryan Owens before the rest of the bench players. Think each staff member has a pre-assigned role of what to say and who to say it to. I want to dive deeper into that. Stay tuned!

Mike

11:15

Glad we're back for hoops, Tom! Any sense of how Coach Shrewsberry interacts with/talks to/relies on his assistants? Who is talking to players? Who is he talking to? I know it's a small sample size but we're all eager to know how this will look this year!

Thomas Noie

11:09

Aidan: Good call, but I sense a trend, and it's not to pick on you, but I cringe at seeing the word "competitive" coming up time and again. It feels like a four-letter word. Like $%^# or &%@#. This team will compete. It may not have enough to win this game or that game, but the days of Notre Dame trailing in ANY game by 50 (yeah, we're not that far removed from that happening), those days are over. Micah Shrewsberry isn't going to stand for much less play guys who don't compete. As he's said, they're going to fight and scratch and claw and grind and then do it all again the next time out. They'll compete, but can they win? Let's find out, right?

Aidan

11:06

I really think we could have a good start to the year. The non-con consists 5 power 6 teams (including Miami in that). I think we have a good chance of beating Georgetown and South Carolina. Both still weak teams in a transition period. Miami, Auburn and Marquette are all top 30ish teams so I'm not expecting wins but I wouldn't be suprised if we go in and make it competitve. Ceiling would be 9-2 and non-con floor would be 5-6 and my prediction is 7-4.

Thomas Noie

11:05

Woof: Preach! I wanted to keep my eyes on the court with the style of play, the combos, the substitution patterns, etc., but I also wanted to see what kind of game coach Shrewsberry is. He gets after it and gets into his guys. Love that he wasn't happy with one guy because his effort disappeared in the second half - HIS SON! Micah couldn't be any more nonplussed by Braeden's 14 points and six rebounds because he wasn't happy with his effort in the second half. Gotta love that. And, yeah, they're going to get a few wins along the ACC road that nobody sees coming. Watch. It's going to happen. As for needing someone who weight more than 220, Kebba Njie is 254. If someone is going to channel their inner Martinas Geben (still the team MVP in 2018, but I digress) it's Njie.

Woof Cookies

11:02

I really like being the underdog in the ACC this year. I'll be SHOCKED if they don't surprise the heck out of some teams in the ACC this year. I'm hoping Zona can turn into a Geben / Cooley type of clone. They need a big man who weighs more than 220. I was watching Coach Shrewsberry last night and he was way more engaged with his bench than Brey was. Not saying that's good or bad, but it was interesting to see the coaching differences.

Thomas Noie

11:02

Aidan: Recruiting being recruiting, anything can happen, but Davis' name is not one I've heard associated with Notre Dame - even before he committed to Providence. They're always actively monitoring the 2024 class, so stay tuned. It's recruiting, so you never know.

Aidan

11:01

I am going to flip the questions and ask about recruiting. Recently former Providence PG, Daquan Davis re-opened his recruitment. Is there any knowlegde on where we stand with him? I would say we finished as the #2 school the first go around. But, I have also heard rumblings of Indiana going after him. Just curious if you are hearing anything on that or if we are actively still even recruiting the 2024 cycle.

Thomas Noie

10:34

Jeff: That's some good Hurley knowledge there. Didn't have many (really, any) dealings with Bob Knight. He was a Hall of Fame coach. I'll just leave it at that. I'd rather Notre Dame play Purdue than Indiana. Why turn Purcell Pavilion into Assembly Hall North?

Jeff from Schererville, IN

10:32

Enjoying the chat so far, and to answer Patrick from NYC's question, Andrew Hurley (son of Dan Hurley) dribbled out the clock for UConn in the national title game last year, but a coach's son with more impact on a national title team is harder to find. My question isn't quite ND-related, but do you have any thoughts on Bob Knight or any good or interesting memories from covering ND-IU games in the past, especially in the home and home days of the 80s and 90s and early 2000s? I'm an ND alum and season ticket holder and not an IU fan per se, but I appreciate what he did for the sport and for basketball in this state even if it came with some difficult moments. Would be nice to get that matchup on the schedule again (not in Indy) but I understand if schools have different priorities and timelines. Thanks!

Thomas Noie

10:31

Ryan: Good first start for this group, but a long way to go. They're going to be fun to watch and the head coach isn't going to accept anything but all-out effort. Micah Shrewsberry wasn't happy about Wednesday's second half because he felt his guys "checked out." That will be addressed.

Ryan mars pa

10:30

Tom what do You Think About this year’s team it was nice to see the team get the win last night under Coach Shrewsberry i saw him the other day at the player walk for football and we was nice and looked over at me go Irish ☘️☘️🏀🏀

Thomas Noie

10:30

Dave: Absolutely they're going to compete. If you know anything about Micah Shrewsberry, you know this - he's going to get his guys to compete for 40 minutes every single night from November to March. Now, that may not translate into many league wins, but it's not going to come from a lack of compete. That right there, I believe, can get Notre Dame two or three additional league wins. What does that mean? Notre Dame won three league games last year. It should win at least six this year. Need to see a little more (and see how they handle adversity) to nail down X amount of overall wins.

Dave

10:27

Do you think this roster is going to be talented enough to be competitive in the always tough ACC & what do you feel is a realistic goal for a number of wins for this team this season?

Thomas Noie

10:21

Patrick: Happy to report that there were ZERO clock malfunctions/issues/meetings last night, but again, the season is young. Other than the house lights not going out for player intros, everything looks and feels pretty much the same - until pre-game wamups start and it takes a few minutes to figure out who's who. All good issues to have.

Patrick from NYC

10:20

New coach for the first time in a couple decades. After the first game, albeit an exhibition, are there any apparent changes to the game day experience? Will we finally minimize all the clock malfunctions?

Thomas Noie

10:20

Mark: I don;t know if it slips below eight or nine given the amount of effort that Micah Shrewsberry expects/demands. He's said that it's exhausting to play that style. It was nice to see nine men play, but it was even nice to see that no two or three guys monopolized the minutes. It was pretty balanced. That's what - that's who - this program needs to be this season.

Mark from Rochester, NY

10:19

Got another one for you. I saw they had a 9 man rotation to start. Do you think that will shrink as the season goes or is Micah committed to playing more 8-9 guys? Thanks!

Thomas Noie

10:18

Mark: Work. Watching Micah Shrewsberry coach Wednesday night wore me out. The guy never stops coaching. It doesn't matter if it's offense or defense or ATO sets or his team down four or up 44. There's a standard there that wasn't there for myriad reasons the last few years. Hate, hate, hate that I have to constantly use the disclaimer of .... it's a small sample size, but was thoroughly impressed/encouraged by what I saw (then heard) from Shrewsberry last night. Like, OK, this program might be going places.

Mark from Rochester, NY

10:16

Tom, glad to be back for another season! What is the biggest philosophical difference you have seen thus far between Micah and Brey?

Thomas Noie

10:12

Patrick: Nope. None. The days of the head coach having to go to the dining halls and stand on tables to drum up attention are over. Here's a new direction for the men's basketball program. Get behind it. Pretty simple, right?

Patrick from NYC

10:11

Tom, if I were a student returning after a tough season for the team last year, I'd be pretty excited to check out an almost brand new team and a new coach. Is there any buzz on campus and has Coach Shrews done anything different to try and drum up student interest?

Thomas Noie

10:11

Chris: Knowing Micah Shrewsberry (and I'll be the first to admit that I don't know him well just yet) I don't know if student attendance has been anywhere near his radar since he arrived in March. So many other areas that have needed his attention. Maybe he looked up Wednesday as he walked out of the tunnel and saw that the student section was ... empty. He'll be more concerned with the product on the court than the people in the seats, but he'll know if the student body decides to embrace this program.

Chris, wash DC

10:09

Tom, Do you think coach schrewsberry has a true appreciation for how hard it well be to get students to come to games? I thought the last question at his press conference was very good. Thanks.

Thomas Noie

10:09

It's the Tyler from Granger portion of the chat...you know we could just meet at the Side Door Deli at Heritage Martin's to talk hoops, right? Notre Dame averaged 6,118 home attendance last year (ugh!) I'll go with something closer to 7,500 this season. They won 11 games at home last year. Think they go at least one better.

Tyler from Granger

10:06

Over/under on attendance in 23-24’ compared to 22-23’ and over/under on 10 home wins this season? I’ll take the over on both. I like 11-6 at home. What say you?

Thomas Noie

10:06

Tyler: Whooooooaaaaaaaaa.... Markus Burton has played one exhibition game (and a secret scrimmage) and we're ready to put him in the same scoring company as ... 'Gody? Look at some of the names of guys who've gone for at least 1,500 points in school history - LaPhonso Ellis, Bonzie Colson, Kelly Tripucka, Jerian Grant, David Graves, Matt Carroll...other guys that are there include Dane Goodwin and Nate Laszewski, who got there because A) They played five seasons and B) They played a ridiculous amount of minutes. I can see Burton and Shrewsberry having careers closer to T.J. Gibbs (my guy!) who went for 1,576 points. I don't know if Micah Shrewsberry is going to give his main guys 34-38 minutes a game like Mike Brey did.

Tyler from Granger

10:02

Whether for good or bad, Shrewsberry and Burton look to be super high volume shooters. Assuming both guys as healthy 4 yr players, I could see either one or even both as 1,500 point scorers. ND might need them to be too. Do you see Burton as the highest career ND scorer since Luke Harangody & a chance to top David Graves 10th best 1,746?

Thomas Noie

10:00

Tyler: Absolutely. You don't cover a guy basically every day for eight months over 23 years and just close that door. I plan to catch up with Mike Brey in ATL the day after the Georgia Tech game. Think he stays away for now. There will be a time and a place for him to return and be acknowledged for where he took the program. This season's not the time. Not yet.

Connecting…