Mike Brey and his Irish staff are suddenly on fire on the recruiting trail. Notre Dame hoops recruiting has not missed a beat despite, well, no one being able to travel or actually be near one another. The good news continued on Saturday when, just over a week after the commitment of small forward Tony Sanders, Santa Clara guard Trey Wertz announced he is transferring to Notre Dame.
Wertz, a 6’4″ combo guard originally from Charlotte, decided to leave Santa Clara primarily in search of a more free-flowing and, frankly, better offense to showcase his talents. He averaged 12 points and 4 assists this past season as a sophomore and earned All-WCC Honorable Mention.
Mike Brey’s guard-driven, floor-spacing offense undoubtedly was the primary appeal of Notre Dame for Wertz. Brey and assistant Ryan Humphrey made it very clear how well they felt he would fit into the offense. Wertz was sold. They’ve also clearly assembled an effective virtual recruiting pitch that has now secured a second commitment from a player yet to visit campus.
Wertz chose the Irish out of a final four schools that included Arizona, Butler, and North Carolina. He earned tons of high major interest following his entrance in the transfer portal just a couple weeks ago. His initial list before paring down to those four included NC State, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Stanford, Vanderbilt, Virginia, and Xavier. Wertz was initially a three-star recruit out of high school. But he chose Santa Clara despite offers from higher profile programs, including Boston College, Clemson, Temple, and Virginia Tech.
Wertz will need to sit out next year and will have two years remaining. This is, of course, subject to change pending a likely upcoming vote on a one-time transfer waiver for all athletes.
Stats
Wertz ramped up his efficiency in his sophomore season despite lower usage and slightly fewer minutes than his freshman year. There’s a lot to like throughout his statistical profile.
Games played: 31 games, 29 starts, 29 minutes per game
Per game: 11.9 points, 3.5 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 2.5 turnovers
Shooting: .489 FG%, .400 3FG% (on 4 3PA per game!), .757 FT%, .582 eFG%, .607 TS%
Highlights
This was the best, most comprehensive video I could find, even though it’s of his freshman year.
Super confident handle. Not sure I can think of another Irish point guard that was quite so smooth. Maybe Tory Jackson? Love the willingness to pull up, float it, or go all the way to the rim. Few guards are so well-rounded to score at all three levels. Uses his body really intelligently to finish around the rim. Just great, great instincts show up all over his highlight packages. Really quick first step, very impressive.
Can sense some hyperactivity that might get him into trouble. Over-dribbling, drives into some trouble spots (which, to his credit, he often gets out of), constantly trying to make things happen rather than letting them develop. His strengths with the ball can quickly become weaknesses if he overdoes it. His turnover rate (23% in his career vs. 17% for Hubb) is slightly worrying in that regard.
Unorthodox shooting stroke, no doubt. Clearly effective last season, but it’d be nice to see him shoot from a little higher than his chest. A little Lonzo-like in that regard. Also somewhat deliberate, even if it’s a quiet release overall. Even just marginal improvements to his stroke would help a lot.
There’s just so much to like. He looks the part. I said when Cormac Ryan committed that he looks like the most “pure” or natural player on the roster. Slot Wertz on that list right after Ryan. I’m really impressed.
Roster Fit
I’m honestly just shocked by how bright the future of this program is. These last couple of seasons have been so painful, and there have been plenty of consternation around the lack of recruiting results and perhaps even the imminent end of the Mike Brey era. All of a sudden, we’re staring at a future backcourt that could easily compete for the top of the ACC. I mean, a three-guard lineup of Prentiss Hubb, Cormac Ryan, and Trey Wertz with Dane Goodwin supersub coming off the bench? There is serious, serious potential here.
Wertz will have an interesting role to play at Notre Dame. To be honest, I think it’s best for Wertz if the transfer waiver does not pass and he needs to sit out this upcoming season. For one, I think all newcomers are going to have a hard time acclimating to their new programs this year in time for the season. Training camps will be shortened and most schools will likely remain locked down over the summer. I’d hate to waste one of his two years on a tough transition year.
Besides that, I am not sure he is looking to exhaust his two years playing third fiddle to both Hubb and Ryan. Instead, without a waiver, I think he will get the perfect development trajectory. His three years in South Bend will go from a redshirt, to third ‘lead’ guard (perhaps off the bench but perhaps supplanting Goodwin in the starting lineup), to co-running the show with Ryan his final year.
Impact
But the depth of options Wertz offers Brey moving forward can truly be a game-changer. He is long and athletic. He can create for others as well as space the floor with his shooting. Aggressive getting to the rim, something this team has desperately needed ever since Matt Farrell departed. And can take the pressure off Hubb when needed while also ensuring that someone like Goodwin will not have to initiate much offense.
Wertz seems like the total package as a Mike Brey guard. He reminds me a bit of Jerian Grant, similar in stature and athleticism. Both overshadowed in high school playing next to higher profile point guards (Devon Dotson to Jerian’s Victor Oladipo). And with enough development in Brey’s offense, both seemingly capable in all facets of guard play.
One of the things we all loved so much about Grant his final year was how well he saw the entire floor, how patiently he let everything develop, and how clinical he was in execution. He was in complete control. But it took time for him to get there. He was often quite frustrating in his decision-making and the pace at which he tried to play in his first couple of years. Wertz still has some of that, which you can see a little in his videos and is evidenced in his turnover rates.
But let’s see what he can do after a couple more years of development. It’s just so easy to see him becoming that lead dog (or co-lead dog with Ryan) worthy of the top of the ACC. And even if he comes up a bit short of that potential, we’re still looking at a solid, all-around scoring option to complement a suddenly exciting future roster for this program. After a couple really tough seasons for this program, Wertz gives Irish fans yet another serious reason for optimism.
Possibly worth noting that Grant had a 20% TORate his sophomore year (21% in BigEast play). There’s actually not a single KP metric that Grant was better than Wertz during their 2nd season of college ball. Obviously, Grant was playing a much higher level of competition in the BE, vs. the WCC, but still rather encouraging.
Love the writeup. I had the same exact thought of likening his recruitment to Jerian’s after reading that Wertz was high school teammates with Dotson.
After watching his highlights, I can totally see how Brey reportedly said “we have to get him” after watching 5 minutes of his tape. That decisiveness towards the rim is something that we lamented our team lacking so often last year. When we got 20 seconds into the shot clock, we didn’t really have the guy who we could just give it to and have attack. Wertz definitely looks like he has that mentality.
I’m just so excited about the future roster construction we have. So many switchy combo guards/wings (Wertz, Ryan, Goodwin, Carmody) along with shooting bigs (Laszewski, Sanders, Zona). The raw materials for an elite Brey offense are all there. It will be very interesting to see how the transfer waiver vote plays out, because I totally agree that we would be better served to save Wertz for 2021-2023, despite the temptation of seeing what he can do immediately.
One more fun thing about this transfer is our academic juniors next year will consist of Hubb, Goodwin, Carmody, Laszewski, Ryan, and Wertz. Talk about a talented group. And with 3 of them likely having a 5th year, they are set up to stagger quite well.
I also agree with the fact that it would behoove Trey Wertz to take a redshirt year, even with an upcoming vote that would grant immediately eligibility to traditional sit-out transfers. On Irish Illustrated (https://247sports.com/college/notre-dame/Article/Trey-Wertz-Finds-His-ACC-Fit-At-Notre-Dame-146133266/) it looks as if Trey might prefer taking the redshirt anyways. I’m just really excited for the ability for the team to practice 5v5 this year. We have 11 scholarship players, and a 12th man in Elijah Morgan, who is a good ball handler himself. Having Wertz play with the 2’s will push Hubb and Ryan to improve as ball handlers, much like Farrell pushed Demetrius Jackson in 2014-15 and 15-16.
As much as I was upset during the course of this season, and as a result of the 2018-19 season due to the lack of depth on ND’s roster, Brey has certainly helped to correct this issue with the addition of Sanders and Wertz this spring. I’m hoping he adds maybe one more player to get the scholarship number to 12 (maybe Castleton from Michigan), but at least with 11 they are good depth wise for the next few years. I’m still patiently waiting for Robby Carmody’s first healthy season… I am still very high on him, and hoping he can recover from his injuries. I just remember watching his high school tape (and early season tape in 2019), and marveling at his aggressiveness, which is sorely needed from this team. If he can show full recovery, I’m confident in our guards through the 2022 season, which will help Brey set up this team for the next coach. Big season to make up for all the negativity the past few years.