Donovan Mitchell Archives - BBallHistory.com

We resume our tournament with a matchup between two teams who have produced solid NBA talent throughout their histories. One has produced a scrappy bunch of glue guys surrounding their bruising, brilliant center. The other has produced high scoring talent that often disregarded the defensive side of the floor. The matchup between the NBA Louisville Cardinals vs. NBA Notre Dame Fighting Irish is a contrast of styles, and the result will depend on the factors highlighted below. (NOTE: 2020 matchup and result update listed below)

NBA Louisville Cardinals vs. NBA Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Key Matchups

Wes Unseld vs. Notre Dame’s shooting big men – All of Notre Dame’s centers had a penchant for playing on the perimeter on offense, and providing a credible threat from long range. Wes Unseld was not a traditional shot-blocking big; he was short, sturdy, and most effective playing post defense. He may be a little lost trying to defend Bill Laimbeer and Troy Murphy out to the three-point line. On the other end of the floor, Unseld was not a scorer; Laimbeer and Murphy will be tasked with putting a body on him and keeping him off the boards. They’re well equipped to do so; Laimbeer and Murphy’s career rebound percentages were 16.7% and 15.7%, respectively, while Unseld’s was 18.0%, suggesting they should be able to at least compete.

Adrian Dantley vs. Louisville’s wings – How do you stop Adrian Dantley? Ideally, you’d have someone who combines length with strength to bother the 6’5” (and likely shorter) low-post machine who was one of the most unique players in league history. Rodney McCray is the best person to defend him on Houston’s roster, but he also is the best person to try to stop Orlando Woolridge. Junior Bridgeman will take his chances with Dantley but will struggle to contain him. They may try one of their big men on him (Pervis Ellison, Gorgui Dieng), but Dantley should be able to get them in foul trouble and have his way in this series.

Biggest Mismatches

Notre Dame’s shooting ability – While the shooting prowess of Notre Dame’s players may not seem impressive in the modern-day context, they still hold a significant advantage over Louisville in this regard. Kelly Tripucka, Laimbeer, John Paxson, Murphy, and Pat Garrity were all dangerous perimeter threats who can open things up for the explosive mid-range and post scorers (Dantley, Woolridge, and Austin Carr) on the roster. Louisville will counter with Darrell Griffith and Francisco Garcia, but they won’t be able to match up from long-range. Relatedly…

Notre Dame’s scoring ability – The Fighting Irish should be able to put a lot of points on the board. They have a legitimate go-to option in the hyper-efficient two-time scoring champion Dantley. They can surround him with shooting as outlined above. Carr and Woolridge were explosive 20+ PPG scorers in their prime. Louisville does have three players who achieved this scoring plateau at least once in their career (Griffith, Derek Smith, and Pervis Ellison), but Notre Dame’s scorers were more consistent and efficient.

Louisville’s defensive versatility – Another way to put this would be ‘Notre Dame’s lack of ability to do anything on defense’. Notre Dame’s lack of defense should open things up for a Louisville team that would typically have a hard time scoring. However, Louisville should also get credit for their collection of guards and wings who can help them guard the perimeter. Starting Bridgeman and McCray at the two forward positions should create a switchable lineup from 1 to 4. Jim Price was an above average defender who made an all-defensive team in his career. They can play several versatile defensive lineups over the course of the series.

X-Factor

Can Louisville take advantage of Notre Dame’s porous perimeter defense? This is a matchup of a resistible force versus a movable object. Louisville will frequently pair Derek Smith with Griffith to make up for their lack of scoring punch, but will it be enough? Unseld and McCray were very good passers for their position, but will good ball movement against a bad defense make up for their collective inability to put the ball in the basket?

Results

This is a fun matchup that features stand out performances from players on each side. Bridgeman, Griffith, McCray, and Smith take advantage of Notre Dame’s defensive futility and combine with Unseld to pull out several close victories. However, the firepower of Notre Dame proves too much for Louisville to handle.

June 2020 Update

Louisville was able to upgrade their roster since the original team writeups were drafted. This is still a very competitive matchup, with Notre Dame continuing to hold the edge in outside shooting and overall firepower. However, the additions of Donovan Mitchell and Montrezl Harrell balance out Louisville’s roster and help them take advantage of Notre Dame’s porous defense. In a back-and-forth deciding game, Louisville controls the pace and pulls out the victory.

Louisville wins, four games to three.

Next Round

Louisville faces the winner of the NBA Villanova Wildcats vs. NBA St. John’s Red Storm.

(NOTE: 2020 updated roster listed below) Our next profile features alums from an annual contender that is one of the most successful programs in college basketball history. Although they rank in the top 10 in NCAA championships, Final Four appearances, NCAA tournament appearances, and NCAA tournament wins, their players have been more solid than spectacular in the pros. The NBA Louisville Cardinals team has a mix of glue guys who can be expected to compete hard, but will ultimately have a hard time challenging the more talented teams in our tournament.

The lead guard position will be split between Butch Beard and Jim Price. Both players were similar in stature (listed heights of 6’3”) and in career accomplishments, having both made one all-star appearance in their prime. Beard was a more efficient player who played a key role on the 1974-75 world champion Warriors, while Price used his ballhawking skills to make the All-NBA Defensive 2nd team the previous year. Both are solid, but are best suited for complementary roles. Dr. Dunkenstein, Darrell Griffith, is the team’s starting two guard. Griffith was a voluminous and oftentimes spectacular scorer, who averaged 21.0 points per game for the first five years of his career before a foot injury derailed his prime. He also was a competent three-point shooter, shooting a league-leading 36.1 percent (not a misprint – that actually led the league) in the 1983-84 season. He’ll serve as the team’s best scorer, and their best chance of generating halfcourt offense. Derek Smith and Francisco Garcia will spell Griffith for stretches, and play alongside him in three-guard lineups. Smith put up impressive numbers on unimpressive Clippers and Kings teams in the 1980s. He peaked in the 1984-85 campaign, when he averaged 22 points per game on 54 percent shooting from the field. Garcia was a deep shooting threat whose strengths are highlighted here; he’ll serve as a valuable cog off the bench.

Junior Bridgeman is another solid wing who will occupy one of the starting forward positions. Although he is best known for being one of the principals in the deal that sent Kareem Abdul-Jabbar to the Lakers (and recently, for his outrageous net worth), he was a spectacular sixth man for the talented Bucks teams of the late 70s to early 80s. He’ll fit in nicely alongside any of the other wing players, and will serve as the second scoring option for most of the lineups he’ll be a part of. Rodney McCray was a versatile weapon who could toggle between either forward position. He was a productive passer and excellent defender, making all-NBA defensive teams in 1987 and 1988. Off the bench, Jack Coleman was a two-time champion and one-time all-star in the 1950s. He nearly averaged a double-double for his career, and although he won’t be expected to replicate his success on the boards against the bigger, more athletic players in the modern game, he should be able to carve out minutes on this roster.

The starting center, Wes Unseld, is the most accomplished player on the roster. One of the toughest players in league history, Unseld overcame his relatively short stature to average 14 rebounds per game throughout his career. His outlet passing was the stuff of legends, as was his screen-setting, two subtle nuances of the game that affect winning, despite not showing up in the box score. He’s the embodiment of this NBA Louisville Cardinals team: the ultimate glue guy, who, despite his limitations, works to make others better and to help his team succeed. He’s backed up by a trio of big men. Pervis Ellison and Gorgui Dieng can play alongside Unseld against bigger opponents. Although Ellison was derided as a draft bust, he peaked as a 20-10 guy in the 1992 season, and was an effective shot blocker in his time in the league. Dieng is a solid defender who can also protect the rim. He is a solid mid-range shooter as well, who’s extending his range each year, which will help to open up the floor, especially when he gets paired with the space-clogging Unseld. Felton Spencer is the biggest player on the roster, who will play sparingly but can provide six extra fouls if facing a dominant center.

The NBA Louisville Cardinals are solid, scrappy, and physical. What they lack in high-end talent, they should make up for in versatility and effort. While they aren’t expected to advance far in the NBA March Madness Tournament, they’ll be a difficult match up for any opponent in the field.

June 2020 UPDATE

Since this profile was written several years ago, we’re going to update Louisville’s roster with the recent talent they have produced. It makes a big difference! Donovan Mitchell and Montrezl Harrell immediately step in as important contributors who can help with their scoring woes.

Garcia and Spencer fall out due to these additions. This is a much more dynamic team that will benefit from having a high-level playmaker (Mitchell) and a modern roll man (Harrell) to diversify their offense.

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