Luke Harangody Update

As far as being a late first round pick?  You can get rid of that idea.  The latest mock drafts have Gody going in the late second round or not at all.  I guess it's a little good news and bad news at the same time.  

I would love to have Gody back, but I do want to see him succeed. 

Why Luke Should Stay

I don't believe in any of this "testing the NBA waters" phrase people keep throwing out.  Luke Harangody has this determination about him which tells me that since he declared for the draft he intends to be drafted.  I just strongly think he shouldn't.

First of all, Luke is no fool.  He must realize that he can't get much (if any)more dominant than he already is right now.  He gets double-double game after game in the toughest conference in the country.  So you make ask yourself, why is he predicted to only be a second or late first round pick?  It's simple, height and athleticism.  I am sure Luke knows this too.  The only thing that is stopping him from being the number 1 pick are things he can't control.  It must be real frustrating.  So why risk another year where you are going to get banged up even more if it won't help you improve your resume to the NBA?  I think people are over looking simple reasons.

This is Luke's last chance to be a star.  He won't be a star in the NBA.  Next year is potentially the best basketball year of his life.  You know you could leave now, but why when there is so much left you can accomplish on the college level.  Especially when your team's last season was such a failure considering the expectations.  I know I wouldn't want to leave my legacy as being that great player that couldn't take is team anywhere.

Look at Tyler Hansbrough.  He is very similar to Harangody.  They both lack athleticism.  They both are respected star-players in college, but will likely only be role players in the NBA.  Tyler decided to come back for his senior season and he won an NCAA Championship, the only thing missing from his college career.  Now let's be serious, the Irish are long shots to win a championship next year but still,  wouldn't be nice to accomplish something?  Harangody was been part of some very talented Irish teams in the last 3 years, 2 NCAA bids and an NIT bid.  However, nothing was accomplished.  No Big East regular season or championship titles.  Nothing past the second round of the NCAA.  No NIT championship.  How great would it feel for Gody to be able to have something big where he can say, I was part of that team.  

Whatever Luke chooses, I will be happy for him.  I just don't think he should waste his last chance to accomplish something big.   

Luke Harangody Declares Eligibility for NBA Draft

"I think at the beginning of last year, you know, when the coach talked about it, my parents came up here.  It never really hit me until then.  People start saying things and you start to wonder, yes, maybe I do have a future in the NBA.  You know, I never thought I could play at Notre Dame.  You know, it's a long transition to male.  You know, it's exciting stuff." - Luke Harangody

Harangody does not plan on hiring an agent.  This means he can pull his name from the draft and return to school before the June 15 deadline.  Ultimately, I believe Gody should and will wait till next year.  He is not projected as a first round pick at the moment and he can still get so much done with Notre Dame.  Because let's face it, next year is Gody's last chance to be the star.  Wherever, Luke goes after college he won't be a star.  Next year he has a chance to make something special happen.  Tyler Hansbrough is the perfect example of that. 

Projected Top 25

Here is what we think should be the Top 25 next year.  It didn't take hours to come up with this so don't panic if your team is not included.

1. Kansas

2. Syracuse

3. Michigan State

4. Texas

5. Villanova

6. West Virginia

7. Purdue

8. North Carolina

9. Duke

10. Tennessee

11. Xavier

12. Butler

13. Washington

14. Clemson

15. Gonzaga

16. Louisville

17. Pittsburgh

18. Michigan

19. California

20. Connecticut

21. Texas A&M 

22. Boston College

23. Missouri

24. Notre Dame

25. Illnois

Also considered:  Marquette, Dayton, Miss St, Oklahoma, Georgetown, Kentucky. 

2009-2010: The Team

2008-2009: The Team 

This season sucked.  That puts it pretty clear and straight forward.  In order for the Irish to improve, their attitude needs to change.  The Irish basketball programming has been improving, but at the same time is struggling to get to that next level.  Everyone settles for mediocrity.  Win a few tough games, compete and make it "interesting."  Fine, you tried. You did your job.  Make the NCAA Tournament, great!  Lose first or second round, it's fine.  At least you made it.  That's the attitude the whole program seems to have now.  It needs to change if ND ever wants to be a good, consistent program. 

I don't know if the people in charge need to change in order for the attitudes to change.  That could very well be the answer to put an end to this mediocrity. Maybe we need a new coach or coaching staff, or maybe just different recruits.  I don't know how, but the attitude of this team needs to improve.

That being said here is our projected starting line-up for next year:

PG: Tory Jackson

SG: Ben Hansbrough 

SF: Scott Martin

PF: Tyrone Nash

C: Luke Harangody

I personally think this line-up is better than the current one. 

PG:  Tory Jackson will need to improve his decision making skills.  Too often this season did he dribble into traffic and turn it over.  Also I found him take a fading a way jumper instead of looking for Luke or Kyle.  Without McAlarney Jackson will be on the only true point guard on the team.

SG: Kyle McAlarney and his deadly shot will be missed.  But if you had to have someone replace him then Ben Hansbrough wouldn't be a bad pick. For Miss State he averaged 11 points per game, and he has a nice shot from 3 point land.  He should do well.  Jonathan People's will once again be the 6th man off the bench at this position. 

SF: Scott Martin will be better than both Ryan Ayers and Zach Hillesland.  Another transfer, he scored 9 points per game with Purdue as a freshmen.  He rebounds and plays defense well. Something ND needs.  Also has a nice 3 point shot.  

PF: The addition of Tyrone Nash into the mix this year should have been done earlier.  It might have saved the year for the Irish if he had.  He provides intensity that others players don't on ND.  He hustles for every lose ball, he is one of the only players on the team that looks like they are giving 110%.  

C:  Nothing to say about Gody.  He had an even better season this year than last.  He just needs to work on his post defense and his stamina.  He did not look nearly as fresh during the BET as he did during  non-conference play.  I think he will be more effective if the team performs better next year.  Too many times it felt like he was trying to carry the team himself when the game was getting out of reach. 

The bench should be fairly deeper next year. That of course depends on Mike Brey's decisions, hopefully this season proves we need to go deeper than a weak 7 man rotation.  Playing only 6 people quality minutes in the Big East just won't get it done.

Charleton Scott will play next year.  He is long and plays great defense, and can score in both the post and on the perimeter.  Jonathan Peoples will also probably continue his bench player roll, even as a senior.  He plays pretty good D and has developed into a decent shooter.  We will need him to improve for next season.  Tim Abromaitis will also return as a junior who still has not played any quality minutes.  I don't think he ever will.  

There are 4 recruits coming to town as well.  Who knows who or how many will play.  

The recruits are Jack Cooley, Mike Broghammer, Joey Brooks, and Thomas Knight.  Cooley may just be Harangody's twin.  They look very much alike, and hopefully they will play alike.  Broghammer, Cooley and Knight are all big men.  Brooks will add more depth to the front court. You can see all the recruits here. 

2008-2009 Season Recap.

The 2007-2008 Season Recap.

Not a good season at all.  The expectations were over the roof for this team and they didn't even come close to living up to them.  Some of the expectations may have been a little unfair, but still, the Irish underperformed to the utmost.  A team that starts its season in the AP and ESPN Top 10 polls and then goes on to not even make the NIT is more than just a little bit disappointing.  

The season started on a promising note.  With victories over two cup cakes we went to Maui and took down a rebuilding Indiana team and won in a thriller against top 10 Texas.  The Irish then went on to play UNC and we put a decent fight. This was the high point of the season and after this things only got worse.  The team then went on to lose to Ohio State, the only other competitive team in the non-conference schedule.  The Irish entered Big East Play with only two loses.

The Big East did start off well despite a second game loss to the awful St. John's squad.  (this game really hurt in the long run.)   But wins against Seton Hall, DePaul and at the time a top 5 Georgetown team the season was still looking promising.  Georgetown collapsed right around the same time we did and also ended up in the NIT.  Then came "the stretch."  This stretch included 7 games.  6 ranked opponents and only 2 home games.  Clearly this was made for TV purposes as the Irish were one of the most nationally televised teams of the year.  The Irish dropped all 7 of them.  We went from a projected 3 seed in the tournament to almost off the NCAA bubble.  We went an entire month without winning.

However, the team showed strength when Louisville came back into town.  The Irish facing their 7 ranked opponent in 8 games and with their confidence at a low somehow managed to not only beat the future Big East champions and #1 overall seed, but destroy them.  The Irish won 90-57 and life was back.  The Irish then beat South Florida but then lost two must win games against West Virginia and Villanova.

No miracle run happened in the BET so the Irish were sent to the NIT.  We performed good and won some quality games, but fell short against Penn State in the semi-finals.  

The attitude of the team needs to change in order to get better.