With seven departures through the Transfer Portal this offseason, Notre Dame is not only looking to pick up the pieces, but pick up a lot of pieces. Among those whom Micah Shrewsberry has zeroed in on is ND Okafor. Now the Fighting Irish will attempt to turn up the heat and reel the 6-foot-10 forward into South Bend.
Outside of the former Washington State forward being a perfect fit for Shrewsberry's school, considering his first name matches the abbreviation of Notre Dame, he'd also be a fit because of his ability to both score and be a defensive presence in the lane.
Okafor played the last two seasons with the Cougars after spending his first two years in college basketball with the Cal Golden Bears. The Dundalk, Ireland native might have spent his entire career on the West Coast, but Notre Dame is hoping the actual Irish player might find interest in manning the frontcourt for the Fighting Irish.
ND Okafor is emerging as a notable Notre Dame basketball portal target
Okafor easily had his best season this past fall, starting all 32 games after mostly coming off the bench his first three years. He averaged 11 points per game, 5.7 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game while shooting 58% from the field.
The Irish import is a more traditional frontcourt player, as he plays close to the hoop and never goes beyond the 3-point line. While it's becoming more prevalent for there to be "stretch 5s" in the sport, Shrewsberry tends to have a more traditional attack, with power forwards and centers sticking closer to the lane.
Okafor’s best game in a Cougs’ uniform arguably came on November 19 against Southern Utah. He scored 27 points and went 12-of-14 from the field. That .857 shooting percentage was the highest single-game percentage by a Cougar with the same number of field goal attempts since at least 1996.
It's not clear if Notre Dame will get ND Okafor to campus as they are competing with schools like St. Mary's, DePaul, Georgetown, Ole Miss. The first step has been Zoom calls, and he has had one with Shrewsberry and his staff.