Breaking: Notre Dame forward Carey Booth to enter transfer portal
Speaking on Notre Dame’s “Wake up the Echoes” podcast, head men’s basketball coach Micah Shrewsberry said continuity — bringing back the team’s young core — was something to be excited about entering his second season. But he gave that statement an important caveat.
“The transfer portal is still open,” Shrewsberry said. “Somebody can still fly out of it, right? You never know what’s gonna happen.”
On Monday afternoon, something happened. Notre Dame freshman forward Carey Booth will enter the transfer portal, he announced on his Instagram story and told On3’s Joe Tipton.
Booth will consider his options, which include remaining in South Bend.
“I’m beyond thankful for getting to wear the blue and gold this year,” Booth said in his Instagram graphic. “I’m especially thankful to Coach Shrewsberry and his staff for believing in me and bringing me to South Bend. With that being said, I’ve decided to enter the transfer portal to keep all of my options open – including a return to Notre Dame.”
Booth, the son of Denver Nuggets general manager Calvin Booth, was Shrewsberry’s highest-ranked recruit in the class of 2023. He was the No. 59 player in the On3 Industry Ranking out of Wolfeboro (N.H.) Brewster Academy, with his lanky 6-foot-10 frame, athleticism and shooting ability standing out among most prospects.
As expected, Booth struggled at times during his freshman season. He made his presence felt early with a 20-point outing against Western Carolina on Nov. 11, but he went through slumps that dropped his minutes to as little as 7 on Feb. 3 at Pittsburgh.
However, as the season hit its home stretch, Booth showed substantial growth as a player. He put together back-to-back strong performances with 15 points against Wake Forest on Feb. 27 and 11 against Clemson on March 2, both resulting in Notre Dame wins. He regained his shooting stroke, going 13-for-35 (37.1 percent) from beyond the arc in the season’s final six games.
Booth finished with 6.4 points and 4.3 rebounds per game as a freshman, shooting 39.1 percent from the field and 29.7 percent from 3-point range. He played in all 33 games, starting 19.
In a 13-20 (7-13 Atlantic Coast Conference) season, Shrewsberry and the Irish watched several young players emerge as core pieces. Freshman guard Markus Burton won ACC Rookie of the Year, fellow freshman guard (and the head coach’s son) Braeden Shrewsberry was one of the league’s best shooters in conference play and sophomore forward Tae Davis was a two-way monster when he was on.
However, with Booth’s physical profile and flashes of strong play as a freshman, many viewed his ceiling as the highest on Notre Dame’s roster. If he does leave in the transfer portal, his loss will sting in South Bend.
