Notre Dame Fighting Irish star named to Naismith watch list

Notre Dame Fighting Irish star Markus Burton is easily one of the best players on the team. He’s in fact, one of the best players in the conference. And in fact one of the best players in the country.

That’s been demonstrated plenty of times over the last year. Burton even declared for the NBA draft shortly after last season. However, that call was mainly to get feedback and find out where his game was lacking. Burton then withdrew from the draft and is ready for his sophomore season.

It looks like big things are expected in that sophomore season, considering Markus Burton was just named to the James Naismith Award Watch List. The award is handed out at the end of the season to the player deemed the best overall in the country.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish star on Naismith Award Watch List

Last year, another star who played his basketball in the state of Indiana won the award for the second straight season. Zach Edey took home the Player of the Year, UCONN’s Dan Hurley got Coach of the Year and Houston’s Jamal Shead got Defensive Player of the Year.

“With Zach’s unparalleled skill, Dan’s unwavering determination, and Jamal’s relentless pursuit of excellence, each of them truly deserves to be honored with this year’s Naismith awards,” said Eric Oberman, President of the Atlanta Tipoff Club. “Their outstanding achievements on the court throughout the season have rightfully earned them the highest accolades in college basketball. We take great pride in acknowledging their unrelenting commitment and remarkable talent. Congratulations to the Big Ten for again showcasing the finest talents in men’s and women’s college basketball this season.”

Burton is one of five players from ACC schools to make this year’s list after scoring 17.5 points per game, hauling down 3.3RPG and dishing out 4.1 assists per game for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish basketball team that hopes to see big improvement this year.