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Notre Dame Basketball: The Irish missed out on Jaden Ivey

By Ben Belden

CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - MARCH 13: Head coach Mike Brey of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish looks on against the Louisville Cardinals during their game in the second round of the 2019 Men's ACC Basketball Tournament at Spectrum Center on March 13, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - MARCH 13: Head coach Mike Brey of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish looks on against the Louisville Cardinals during their game in the second round of the 2019 Men's ACC Basketball Tournament at Spectrum Center on March 13, 2019 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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Notre Dame basketball missed out on a home-town recruit in the class of 2020 when Jaden Ivey chose to commit to Purdue on Wednesday.

Notre Dame basketball likely thought it was a lock to land Jaden Ivey, but the 2020 recruit from hometown Marian Catholic High School chose to commit to Purdue on Wednesday. Ivey, who is a 6-foot-2 guard, had narrowed his decision down to the Boilermakers and the Irish.

Most thought that the hometown product would stay in South Bend, and that feeling made even more sense, given that his mother, Niele Ivey, is an assistant coach with Muffet McGraw and the Notre Dame women’s basketball program.

Ivey would have been Notre Dame’s first commit in the class of 2020. While the impact of his decision won’t affect the Irish–no single recruit usually does at a school like Notre Dame–this particular decision feels particularly like a gut punch for Mike Brey’s program. At least that’s how it feels from the outside.

One would reasonably expect that a local standout who goes to a Catholic high school and who has Notre Dame ties to be a lock to end up playing for Mike Brey. This one hurts a little extra.

I wouldn’t say that missing out on Ivey is symptomatic of a larger problem at Notre Dame. Maybe the feeling stems from the fact that Notre Dame just came off such a disappointing season. Regardless, missing out on seeing Ivey play in the Blue and Gold for four years is disappointing.

Finally, I don’t blame Ivey for going elsewhere. College is a great experience and wanting to experience it outside of the realm of his own back yard is completely understandable. In addition, his mother is one of the most well-known assistant coaches in women’s college basketball. While it seems that Coach Ivey will be on the sidelines for Notre Dame next season, who knows if she’ll be there in years to come.

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In the end, Ivey made the choice that felt right. It’s hard to fault him for that. But as stated earlier, it’s also hard to not feel like Notre Dame missed out on this one.