After a lull in 2023 recruiting, Notre Dame will finally host another visitor to potentially fill one of their many open backcourt slots in 2023-24. Four Star combo guard, Parker Friedrichsen, will start off his string of official visits with a trip to South Bend today.
The sharpshooting combo guard will also take trips to Davidson on August 30th, Rice on September 2nd, Nebraska on September 9th, and Northwestern on September 16th. Friedrichsen recently cut his list to Notre Dame and the other four schools that he'll be visiting.
The 6'3 guard was offered after Notre Dame missed out on a few key guard targets and seems to be their biggest remaining target still on the board. The Irish staff is looking to pair Friedrichsen with South Bend native Markus Burton, who committed to the Irish last month. In addition to Burton and Friedrichsen, Notre Dame was included in Elmarko Jackson's recent list cut, the Irish staff will also likely be in active pursuit of a few transfer guards in the portal.
Friedrichsen is likely appealing to the Notre Dame staff mainly because of his shotmaking ability, the Oklahoma native proved during the high school season and summer that he can efficiently hit shots from all around the arc, different ranges, and different platforms. The Oklahoma native also has nice touch on floaters and other mid range looks. In 2021-22 Friedrichsen averaged 28 points per game while shooting 44% from beyond the arc.
If Brey and staff can land Freidrichsen, he would likely play a Steve Vasturia or TJ Gibbs type role offensively.
Outside of landing Markus Burton, Notre Dame's class of 2023 guard recruiting has likely not gone the way they had hoped. What started as a board full of talented guards that all seemed to have some legitimate interest in the Irish, has disintegrated into a short list of important targets. The slow summer on the recruiting trail for Mike Brey and his staff has made Freidrichsen's recruitiment and visit that much more important for the Irish staff. At this point, Freidrichsen's recruitment isn't only about landing a competent player, it's about filling out a class and a roster that desperately needs guards that can contribute in the coming years.
The Notre Dame staff can do just that if they land Freidrichsen. Today's visit is a sizeable opportunity to make an impression on the 2023 recruit before his mindset changes to decision making mode. Today is an opportunity for the staff to get closer to convincing the Oklahoma native that he should play his college basketball in South Bend.
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