This is the second in our series of season kick-off round tables for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish basketball season. In Part 1, we covered hot topics from the off-season. In Part 2, we run down the Irish roster and look at how the piece parts might fit together for Mike Brey and his staff.

Bonzie Colson and Matt Farrell have been media darlings this off-season. What do you foresee for ND’s key players to watch?


Joe: Bonzie Colson has been a warrior for 3 years in South Bend. His role has grown steadily each year on campus, and only blue bias kept his name off the ACC PoY trophy last year. After 3 years of chasing, how will Bonzie handle being a front runner? Can he find a chip to carry around on those strong shoulders? I really think so. He has the attitude and the family support to stay hungry and humble (h/t Tom Noie) and deliver for this team. Importantly, his classmate, roommate and teammate Matt Farrell knows a thing or two about shoulder chips. I think Farrell wants to tongue-wag, onions-dance, and swag his way through a senior season where he shows all of us who doubted him just how wrong we were. Farrell now has a post-season, a full-season, and another post-season of experience under the big lights. I think he’s now mature enough to use his edge to drive this team forward and carry them when he needs to.

Eric: I have zero worries about Bonzie staying hungry and delivering another awesome season. He has room for improvements on defense, but don’t see how his offense doesn’t remain at a high level. My only concern with Farrell is fighting fatigue come March. He’ll have to carry a bigger shooting load than last season. Playing 35+ mpg could lead to his shot flattening out in March as we’ve seen with Steve in past years. That said, I’d bet on both being All-ACC players and being the keys to a deep March run.

Dan: I definitely see big things for Bonzie. Him trying to single handedly drag us back in the West Virginia game at the end of last year has me hoping that he can keep the chip on his shoulder and be the guy who drags us along when we need it. With Farrell, I’m more skeptical. Last year, I was often concerned about him playing out of control in moments where he felt like he had to do everything and playing poorly as a result. It’s absolutely possible that Team Leader Matt Farrell can tone some of those moments down and play under control when we need him, but I’ll be watching to see how he reacts when we’re down 7 on the road after a mini-run by a good team.

Alstein: I could talk about these guys all day long, but here are the keys I see for each to really become next level players. I hope Bonzie can shoot the ball a little more without hurting his efficiency, just to make life a little easier for him throughout the duration of the season. Seems likely that between Geben and Burns, he’s going to have a post guy to help him do the dirty work, so maybe he can be a little more of a stretch player without hurting the team as a whole in other ways. Farrell really struggled in the middle of the schedule, and the team’s offense did as well as a result. Teams were really pressuring him on ball screens, and he had a tough time doing more than just backing out, which halted the flow of the offense. He adjusted nicely later on, but can he run a deadly PnR attack as the focal point of most defenses all season long? I think so, but it’s no guarantee.

Simon (4PS): I mean, is there much more to say about a guy who’s going to win multiple National Player of the Year awards and his running-mate who’s going to be All-ACC 1st Team? The only thing to watch is their health and we’re going to ride these two horses all the way to another double-bye and 2-4 seed come March.

Paddy: Bonzie’s final performance of last season, the heroic effort against West Virginia, was such a ridiculous high note that it’s hard to imagine him becoming an even more lethal offensive weapon. He will continue to be unguardable in the paint; I am interested how willing Mike Brey will be to space him out at the 3-point line. If he can sustain the 43.3% 3P mark he put up last year with increased volume, he could have one of the best seasons in program history. Matt Farrell proved himself to an almost shocking degree last year. While everyone raved at his clutch performances, I feel like his 42% mark from deep almost sailed under the radar. With the Irish losing many of their long-range threats from behind the arc, I’ll be interested to see if Farrell can sustain that percentage while carrying an even larger bulk of the offensive load.

The other two guys playing out their eligibility this year are Martinas Geben and Austin Torres. What roles do you see for them?

Joe: Torres’ stress fracture comes at a very inopportune time for the graduate student. However, Mike Brey might see it as a bit of an opening to take longer looks at the other bigs on the roster to figure out which components fit best around his two main guys. We know we’ll get energy, defense, rim protection, and rebounding from Austin. He’ll be there if/when Brey needs him. Geben is the much more interesting story. Coming off a successful run with the Lithuanian team at the World University Games this summer, he enters the season with a lot of confidence. He’s quoted saying he wants to leave with no regrets. This has to be music to Brey’s ears. Geben has the physical presence to be an effective post player in the ACC. He’s not going to get you 20 points a night, but he’s good for a solid 5 point, 9 rebounds in 20’ish minutes, and that’s what Brey needs. He needs to be able to take some of the interior pounding off Colson, and an energized and confident Geben can do exactly that.

Eric: Torres’s role was laid out last year when he said he’d be coming back. He’ll play 5-10 minutes per game off the bench in short bursts to provide energy on defense. Geben is in a more interesting spot. He had the most exciting summer of any returning player, and looked like a different player at an open practice last week. There were reports of him sticking jumpers from the elbows, and effectively passing out of the block with his Lithuanian team. If he can be an effective offensive player, he’ll help Bonzie a ton against bigger ACC opponents.

Alstein: To be honest, less and less of one as the season goes on. I’m all aboard the Elijah Burns hype train just because his skill set is so much better suited to complement the rest of this roster and the offense overall. Geben and Torres are what they are at this point, but I’m suffering from the classic Backup QB effect right now. Let’s see what the new guy can do.

Simon (4PS): Marty’s going to be a key cog for this team. His size and impact during his 20 minutes on the court are going to be critical on both sides of the court. I’m going to trust his passing and rebounding as it seems like Brey is committed to playing a true 5 next to Bonzie for most of the game. With regards to Torres, I’m more with Alstein in that I too am aboard the Burns train and couple the young big’s rise with the stress fracture, you’re likely looking at more of a bench/locker room leadership role from the grad student. If he can get healthy and provide the occasional 4 minute energy stretch come January or February, that would be more than welcome!

Paddy: Austin Torres seems like the most predictable player on this entire roster. He’s a nonfactor on offense that can provide short spurts of defensive energy to pump up the sometimes-sleepy Purcell Pavilion crowd. Brey knows exactly what he has with him, and that’s why I’m sure he is glad to have him back for a final year. Geben is much more of a question mark. I’m sure he will start throughout the non-conference schedule as he did last year, but unless he demonstrates a drastically improved offensive game, I think Brey’s innate small-ball preference is always going to relegate Geben to a more secondary role in the ACC.

What do you see for our only junior on the team? What does the year hold for Rex Pflueger?

Joe: Let me check my thesaurus for synonyms for “breakout.” Rex has spent his first two years in South Bend earning time on the floor with outstanding defense and hustle. He was asked to take care of the ball and fill a 5th-option role on offense. This is a guy who patiently waited in the program and honed his game. Now he can confidently step into that 3rd scorer role in addition to being the team’s stopper. He watched guys like Connaughton and Vasturia step into bigger roles as they progressed through the program. Rex has enough athleticism and size to guard 4 positions. He’s in that perfect spot where he doesn’t have to carry this team, but his contribution as an X-factor is what could make this team special.

Eric: You’d love to see Rex make the leap to a Vasturia-like contributor on offense. His defense is already outstanding, but consistently finishing at the rim and knocking down outside shots is the key to taking his game to the next level. The Irish need some outside shooting to replace Vasturia and Beachem, and Rex should be the guy to provide it.

Dan: He’s already a shutdown defender, so his growth will obviously need to come on the offensive end. He was rarely used last year, finishing only 12% of possessions on the offensive end, but was fairly efficient when he did so, shooting 39.7% from 3. The biggest challenge will be maintaining that efficiency while increasing the usage, Last year, Vasturia finished nearly 20% of our possessions, so seeing Pflueger handle a bump to somewhere in the 18-20% range against our above average non-conference opponents would be a nice indicator of things to come.

Alstein: I just want to see more dunks. He needs to find his way to the rim, off the bounce, back door, attacking the boards, whatever. He needs to score more from inside with confidence, otherwise I don’t think he’s really doing all he can for this offense as just a spot-up shooter. I’m pretty confident we’ll see a more well-rounded offensive attack from him this year.

Simon (4PS): I think it’s fair to say that we don’t need Rex to initiate offense from the perimeter so long as Matt and TJ are healthy (and I have a difficult time imagining a meaningful possession where at least one of them isn’t on the court) but we do need him to feel like a constant threat and I think he’ll be able to do that. He’s not quite as big, but almost as athletic as Pat Connaughton was so if he can be a threat to shoot from the corners and wings to the point where defenses have to respect you, he should be able to feast on dribble drives and cuts to the basket.

Paddy: I would love to see some more decisiveness offensively from Rex. He has always struck me as an intelligent player offensively, whether it is making smart cuts or nifty passes into the post. However, he has often hesitated when receiving the ball at the three-point line. This was understandable when he was a young player representing the 5th option on offense, but this year, I want to see Rex firing up deep balls fearlessly, and making hard drives to the rim when defenders close out on him. I can’t see Brey taking him off the court very often, so he’ll certainly have time to acclimate to this new role.

Apparently TJ Gibbs’ mom had him on a diet this summer. What do you foresee for the leaner, meaner sophomore?

Joe: I referenced it earlier with Bonzie. I like guys with good families, and the Gibbs pedigree is an impressive one. The game was never too big or too fast for TJ last year. His mind was there, even though his body hit the wall. Brey talks about the big junior leap, but I feel like Gibbs is well ahead of that curve, and will relish in his opportunity to get on the floor 30 minutes a night. Fresher legs equal fresher shooting, and when teams have to double Bonzie on the blocks, TJ is going to see a lot of clean looks to fire it up or blow by guys.

Eric: I think TJ’s play could be the difference between this team being good and great. I’m not worried at all about his defense, but if he can be more than a ball-mover on offense to give the team four big threats to score, this team could be really special.

Alstein: I think he’ll be a star next year, but it is a bit of an awkward role for him this year to be second fiddle to Farrell. Gibbs is a true point guard who needs the ball in his hands to be at his best, so he’s going to have to really develop into his off-the-ball role a little better than he did last year. Maybe that’s as simple as just shooting better to open things up, so hopefully that’s what we see early and often.

Simon (4PS): I’m pretty optimistic given TJ’s pedigree and the news about his potentially more explosive frame. I think he’ll thrive in his role as the secondary ball handler/playmaker and maybe even pick his spots to feast on opposing teams’ backup guards. If his outside shooting can become a reliable thing – hopefully his older brother Ashton gave him some tips – I expect him to be the third best player on the team.

Paddy: While I wouldn’t call Gibbs’s freshman year a disappointment by any stretch, I do think it took him some time to adjust to the athleticism of ACC rim protectors, as it felt like his drives ended up getting wiped out quite a few times. When his 3-point shot left him down the stretch, that really limited his ability to contribute offensively. With all the talk of his transformed body over the offseason, I hope he can adapt his game to absorb contact and finish at the rim more consistently.

We’ve now reached the mystery portion of the roster. Let’s go through each guy and get the first sentence that comes to mind…

Elijah Burns

Joe: Surprised to hear Brey would have him first off the bench today, but love the idea of a physical presence who communicates well on defense.

Eric: He’s the go-to guy off the bench if you need interior defense. His offense will determine if he’ll just be a role player, or a consistent contributor.

Dan:We’ve been waiting for Burns and Mooney to arrive and hopefully Brey just signaled it with his comments about Burns being a 6th man.

Alstein: Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. I really believe he can be the perfect complement to Bonzie. He should be able to do the dirty work down low and on the boards, be physical in the PnR, step out and credibly stretch out most opposing 5s. He could probably be the most versatile defender on the team given his strength and athleticism. I think the upside here is so high but just hope he’s healthy and ready for the challenge.

Simon (4PS): Very surprised (in a totally good way) to hear that he may be the first guy off the bench! A lot of people have made the comparison to Ty Nash but I don’t foresee Burns handling the ball as much as Nash did in his playing days. As I alluded to earlier in the discussion re: Marty, it seems Brey is committed to playing a big next to Bonzie to keep him fresh, so Burns will be relied on for 8 minutes stretches per half – I expect him a produce.

Paddy: He’s a total mystery to me, but if he can provide physicality and knock down open shots, he could be this season’s big discovery.

John Mooney

Joe: No one should have been happier to see Matt Ryan move on, there’s an immediate role for guys who can both stretch the defense and clear the defensive glass.

Eric: A lock to feature against zone. I think he’s the opposite of Burns in that his defense will determine how much he plays.

Alstein: Not the biggest fan, but you gotta be worried about three-point shooting this year. If it looks like shooting might be a bit of a struggle for the main guys early on, then you might see Brey try to force Mooney into the lineup to try to inject a deep threat in there.

Simon (4PS): I won’t lie, I believed Mooney would be finally be the Kurz incarnate (Now… Laz?) that we were all waiting for but with Burns making a leap ahead of him things look a bit crowded for Mooney up front. If he’s willing to be patient and wait out for Marty’s graduation after the season, that’s one thing but then the talented Mr. Durham lurks.

Paddy: Could end up the odd man out in a crowded frontcourt rotation, although Brey does seem quite enticed by his size and shooting combination.

Nikola Djogo

Joe: He’s truly the mystery man, perhaps even more than Harvey, but I have to imagine that being the primary ball handler for the 2nd team is going to accelerate his development into a dependable, long, bouncy wing contributor.

Eric: I could see his contribution being anywhere from first guard off the bench to only playing mop-up minutes. Based on what I’ve seen, I’d lean more toward the first. Considering he only ended up here due to Brey’s recruitment of Thon Maker, becoming a solid contributor as a redshirt freshman would be fantastic.

Dan: I’m intrigued. All we get are small nuggets of information on Djogo, but everyone talks about his athleticism and skills as if he could be an amazing find. Given that we’ve discussed the fact that our top two is set but there are some questions on who steps up next, seeing Djogo come alive early in the season would be pretty exciting.

Alstein: He’s got a tantalizing skill set, but I suspect he’s a year away despite the attention he’s received most of the offseason. Between Burns, Harvey, and the mandatory Torres minutes, I think we all know Brey well enough at this point to know that there aren’t going to be a whole lot of minutes for another guy.

Simon (4PS): Supposedly he’s the ball handler in the second unit which is another surprise. Djogo looked good in a suit all year last year so whatever he can give is a bonus, but I suspect he’ll be leapfrogged by DJ Harvey by the time the ACC schedule rolls around.

Paddy: Djogo is my pick to be the true breakout this year. I think he will absolutely get the opportunity with the lack of depth at the wing and Brey’s small-ball tendencies. Every snippet of his play that I’ve seen has been quite encouraging, and I think he will fit right in as a very effective role player.

DJ Harvey

Joe: Every report is that this dude arrived college ready, and if he can score at all 3 levels, Brey will find a way to use him early and often.

Eric: A better version of last year’s TJ.

Alstein: The offense will need DJ Harvey this season. I actually think he kinda slots into this lineup perfectly as a weakside bucket-getter to take pressure off Farrell and Colson in ways that other guys just can’t on their own. If I may be so bold, I think Harvey will be the fourth-leading scorer on the team this year behind Colson, Farrell, and Pflueger.

Simon (4PS): My favorite ND basketball recruit ever. He’ll probably brought on relatively slowly but I can’t imagine a world where he’s not a star a year from now so I presume his impact will be tangible by the mid-season.

Paddy: His athleticism is clear, and I think he has an extremely high ceiling as a future star. However, I have concerns whether he will be able to knock down jump shots as a freshman. If he doesn’t, I can see Djogo surpassing him in the rotation. If he does, our offense may become borderline unfair.

If you’re Mike Brey and you need to close out a big game tomorrow, which 5 are closing for you?

Joe: I think the first four names are no-brainers. Matt, TJ, Rex, and Bonz are all out there. In my mind, Brey values offense and shooting above all else. Moreover, he has had a lot of success “downshifting” lately. He’s a guy who doesn’t fix what isn’t broken. For those reasons, I’m guessing Harvey gets a chance to close. While you might worry about putting such a young guy into the mix, there’s so much veteran presence around him, that I’d roll the dice.

Bens: Matt, Bonz, Rex, and TJ are a given. After that, I’d lean toward Djogo or Harvey since we tend to go small down the stretch.

Dan: The good news is that we don’t need to close out a big game tomorrow and we have a chance to let our young guys get some run and see where they fit. Tomorrow, I’m probably rolling with Burns, even though it goes against Brey’s small-ball-late tendencies. Hopefully by the time we get into conference play, I fully expect Harvey or Djogo to give Brey options.

Alstein: I’m not quite so sure that TJ is automatic, depending on the match-up, although his ball-handling and FT shooting are certainly big plusses in his favor. I love Harvey because we know he can shoot FTs and should be a versatile enough defender. We’ll see if Burns can make FTs, but he seems like the type of guy who will dig in and make the tough play that you need down the stretch.

Simon (4PS): I think we have 3 – Bonz, Matt, Rex – that are always there. Then two of TJ, DJ, Burns, or Marty will be on the court with them depending on: match-up, foul trouble, hot hand etc. Yes, I know I said that I expect TJ to be third best player on the team – I just think that Rex is more versatile on D.

Paddy: That fifth spot seems truly up for grabs right now. For the sake of the hypothetical, I’ll allow myself to dream on the stud freshman, and throw Harvey out there with Farrell, Gibbs, Pflueger, and Colson.