Mike Brey has built Notre Dame into one of the most consistently efficient offensive programs in the country. Strong guard play has been a staple of that run, too. Over the weekend, Notre Dame landed one of the top guards transfers on the market: Trey Wertz.
Shortly after entering the transfer portal, Wertz — who hails from Charlotte, N.C. — was contacted by dozens of programs. Several ACC programs quickly entered the mix for the Santa Clara transfer; Kevin Keatts of NC State was one of the first.
The list, however, was trimmed down to seven schools by the end of last week. Three ACC programs remained: Notre Dame, Virginia and UNC. In the end, though, Wertz elected to go with Brey and the Irish. Wertz has two seasons of eligibility remaining.
COMMITTED!☘️ #GoIrish pic.twitter.com/O7PVaOpUxQ
— Trey Wertz (@_TDub3) April 11, 2020
While playing for Herb Sendek at Santa Clara, the 6-foot-4 guard appeared in 62 games (58 starts). For his career, Wertz has averaged 12 points, 4.3 assists and 3.2 rebounds per game. As a sophomore, he shot 40 percent on 3-point attempts (4 3PA per game); he also led Santa Clara rotation players in assist rate (26.2 percent) and effective shooting (57.6 eFG%).
According to Synergy Sports, Wertz posted an effective shooting rate of 64.9 percent on catch-and-shoot looks this season, which is a great number. On top of that, he scored 0.94 points per possession out of the pick-and-roll. That type of skill profile — the ability to play on and off the ball — fits nicely into Notre Dame’s system. The Irish run more spread pick-and-roll (horns sets) now that a few seasons ago. But if Notre Dame dials up more blocker-mover and floppy sets, then Wertz should work well, too.
Roster Outlook
Notre Dame is set to turnover a large chunk of its roster; plenty of backcourt minutes are up for grabs. Seniors John Mooney, TJ Gibbs and Rex Pflueger will depart. Mooney and Gibbs both scored over 1,110 points while in college.
Assuming the NCAA signs off on a one-time waiver for transfers to receive immediate eligibility, Wertz works as a nice plug-and-chug piece next season. If that doesn’t happen, for some reasons, Wertz will redshirt the 2020-21 season.
Wertz and Prentiss Hubb would be a nice offensively-minded guard duo for Brey.