The Notre Dame hoops program seems to be gaining a little steam heading into an important bounce-back season. At long last, the Irish have secured their first commitment in the 2020 class in Philadelphia power forward Elijah Taylor.

Taylor committed to Notre Dame on Thursday following his official visit this past weekend. When he cancelled his scheduled visit to Pittsburgh and instead scheduled a commitment announcement, good news for the Irish seemed all but assured. He made it official in a press conference on Thursday that he had indeed chosen South Bend as his future home.

Notre Dame had only recently offered this summer, partially for academic reasons, but had been recruiting Taylor for at least a few months. For a while, it seemed like Taylor might be landing at a place like VCU or even Princeton. But he really emerged as a high major player with some headline performances in the Philadelphia area over the last year or so. He “stole the show” at the Philly Live event in June, after which most of his high profile offers poured in.

Ultimately, his final 6 included Florida, Pittsburgh, Providence, Seton Hall, VCU, and of course Notre Dame. Beating out the likes of Mike White, Jeff Capel, and Ed Cooley for a commitment is certainly a nice feather in Mike Brey’s cap.

Taylor and his high school coaches have spoken quite a bit about academics and going to a place that positions him well off-the-court as well as on it. The Irish recruiting pitch seemed to hit all the right notes in this one, from connecting with his future teammates to the business school to the Ty Nash film study.

Rankings

247: 3 star – 190th overall – 30th ranked PF

Rivals: 3 star – 28th ranked C

ESPN: 3 star – 33rd ranked PF

247 Composite: 3 star – 215th overall – 39th ranked PF

Highlights

 

Here are a couple videos that I think show what Taylor can do. He doesn’t have one long highlight video like some other prospects, but he has a bunch of shorter ones scattered all over the place. But my thoughts are about everything I’ve seen on him.

Listed at 6’8” and 215 pounds. Looks really built for 215 pounds, can probably add a bit more but wonder how much more he can or should add. Clearly can elevate pretty easily. Makes a ton of highlight-worthy defensive plays, and not just in the paint. Really, really aggressive going for blocks and steals. Could be a negative but you love to see it at this level. Plays with a lot of fire, which you’d expect from such a high intensity guy. Willing to run the court in transition. Presses quite a bit defensively for his high school team. Just all effort, all the time from him.

Showing a bit more range recently. Smooth-looking shot. Too deliberate, which makes it hard to see it becoming a go-to weapon against ACC opponents. Does at least suggest he can become an adequate free throw shooter. Good composure and feet in the post, but most effective crashing hard to the rim. Solid finisher around the rim, even if too left-hand dominant. Doesn’t quit on the boards but could definitely be more disciplined. Tons of raw material to work with that Notre Dame doesn’t often have.

Impact

I love Taylor. The rankings are pretty low, but perhaps they are still yet to catch up to his big summer. Regardless, he’s the type of player that Notre Dame seldom has. A long, lean, athletic big man who is a max energy defensive guy and will do most of his damage at and above the rim. He actually feels like the type of guy that Shaka Smart had in waves at VCU that made them so good defensively.

Brey has been selling him on being a Ty Nash type of guy, which is probably the closest Notre Dame comp beyond just the left-handedness. But Taylor feels like a more modernized version of Nash. A bit longer and more athletic, shows a bit more range and skill, and probably a more versatile defender. He’s not really a back-to-the-basket kind of player. But he will likely be more effective facing up, setting screens, attacking the rim, and occasionally popping out. He really seems like a great fit for this offense as a big man, to say nothing of the enormous defensive potential that could truly be a game-changer for Notre Dame’s roster.

I don’t necessarily see Taylor developing into a go-to offensive threat that’s going to put up all-ACC numbers or anything. He is already a pretty efficient scorer (62% FG% in the EYBL), but I think that’s because he just does what he does around the rim and not much more. He would have to develop a much more diverse skill set in order to get to that point. To be honest, I’m not sure that’s even how Brey will want to really develop him anyway.

But he seems like a no-brainer top-end role player who is going to raise the toughness level of this team immensely, let his guards run the show, and produce enough to be dangerous. I think we’re looking at a future starter here and one that adds a much-needed dimension to this roster. I’m often guilty of over-hyping Notre Dame prospects. But I think we’re all going to come to appreciate Elijah Taylor quite a bit in the coming years.