SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Inside Notre Dame’s basketball practice facility, all of the Irish’s former WNBA draft picks are highlighted on a wall running the length of the court, clear and constantly visible.
Notre Dame had the second-most alumni in the league this past season with eight on opening rosters, and coach Niele Ivey takes pride in the impact and production of players she coached and recruited in the 2010s as an assistant to Muffet McGraw.
Alongside the graphics of current and former pros are three empty spots with a simple question printed over them:
“Who’s Next?”
Three current players for the sixth-ranked Irish — redshirt junior guard Olivia Miles, senior guard Sonia Citron and fifth-year senior forward Maddy Westbeld — are projected to be drafted next spring.
And while the WNBA season and the draft aren’t the main focus for the Irish (4-0), who visit No. 3 USC (4-0) on Saturday in Los Angeles, they are key components of how Ivey has shaped the program.
“I’m fortunate to have been a player, been in the pros, know how to get there physically, but also know how to develop,” Ivey said. “We have a great system. We have the blueprint. … That’s something that attracts really great players.”
Recruiting players who can succeed both in South Bend and as professionals is one in the same for Ivey and her staff.
For more than a decade, Notre Dame has run the Princeton offense with a mix of chin actions, a system built upon playmaking, quality reads and spacing. Every player is expected to make timely plays with the ball.
It’s similar to how the WNBA — and basketball at large — has trended recently. Improving in the Irish system also improves your ability to become a pro, said Miles, who’s back in the lineup after sitting out last season rehabbing a knee injury.
“They separate themselves from the rest because they do it simultaneously,” Miles said of the Notre Dame coaches. “They train our minds to be in a pro mindset, but that also helps to translate to the games here.”
Ivey made a key addition to her staff before last season, hiring Carlos Knox, a longtime coach and player development expert who spent more than a decade with the Indiana Fever.
“What I want as a coach for this program is to always elevate it,” Ivey said. “Elevate the players, expose them to something different or better or elite. That was a home run getting (Knox) here.”
Knox, who still was playing professionally at the time, began working out with Hall of Famer Tamika Catchings when she first came to Indiana in 2001 and spent her rookie season recovering from an ACL injury.
That eventually led to training with Ivey, then the Fever’s starting point guard, kick-starting a relationship that would bring them back together 20 years later.
“I looked at her roster, I looked at the WNBA potential,” Knox said, “and I said, ‘Hey, this is a spot that I can come in and make a difference teaching them to be next level.’”
While skill development is central to making that leap — athleticism, feel for the game and basketball understanding are all key things Knox looks for — he said instilling a focused mindset can’t be understated.
Westbeld credits Knox with helping her become more intentional in how she trains. She said another year of working with Knox was at the front of her mind when deciding to return for a fifth year in South Bend. She knows she can reach another level, and in turn the team can as well.
That element of focus is essential at Notre Dame, as Ivey heavily emphasizes a player-led program.
“She’s not going to waste your time,” Westbeld said. “We come in, we get the work done that we need done and then you’re out. Then the time outside of this is up to you, and that’s how it is in the pros.
“She puts a lot of trust and responsibility in us, and I think that’s unique from other places. That’s Notre Dame, in a sense. You come here and you have to separate yourself from every other person.”
There are days when the intensity or focus isn’t always perfect, Miles said, but there’s leeway for players to reinforce those values themselves. She and Citron composed Ivey’s first recruiting class as head coach, and it has been a work in progress to evolve as vocal leaders.
But this season has a different air to it. Citron readily admits she feels most comfortable leading by example, but she knows her voice needs to be heard more.
“It’s my last year,” Citron said, “so I’m going to do whatever I need to do to make this team as good as it can be.”
While sidelined last season, Miles found a different appreciation for how to communicate with and read her teammates. She studied players and coaches to better understand how to approach them, and she said that has been a key to finding a new level of synergy.
Shortly before this season started, the Irish were greeted at their 7 a.m. practice — less than 24 hours after one of the more grueling sessions of the preseason — by a surprise guest.
Skylar Diggins-Smith, returning to campus for the first time since Ivey became head coach in April 2020, wound up spurring on the team to one of its most intense practices leading up to the season. She jumped into every drill with the vigor and grit that have made her a six-time WNBA All-Star.
Multiple players seemed star-struck, turning to one another after watching Diggins-Smith pick up a male practice player for 94 feet and hound him into a turnover.
Ivey said that was a massive moment for All-America sophomore guard Hannah Hidalgo, last season’s ACC Rookie and Defensive Player of the Year. Ivey routinely speaks about the similarities between Diggins-Smith and Hidalgo, and watching them side by side in practice was telling.
“Sky is like this in practice, but you can’t simulate it,” Ivey said. “It’s so valuable to have her here, to have that connection. … I think that’s the best teacher you can have, someone that’s actually playing where they want to get to.”
Mark Schindler is a freelance reporter for the Chicago Tribune.
