Notre Dame guard JJ Starling enters transfer portal
Notre Dame signed five-star guard JJ Starling knowing he might only be around for one season. That idea came to fruition Monday, but not in the form of an NBA Draft entry as originally envisioned.
Starling has entered his name in the NCAA transfer portal Monday, BlueandGold.com has confirmed. He has three seasons left to play at his next destination. He was Notre Dame’s fourth-leading scorer this season, averaging 11.2 points per game, and was selected to the ACC All-Freshman team. He started 24 of the 28 games he played, averaging 29.7 minutes per contest.
Starling shot 42.1 percent overall, 29.9 percent on three-pointers and 63.8 percent from the foul line. He averaged 2.8 rebounds and 1.2 assists per game. He missed the final four games of the season due to knee soreness.
The 6-foot-4, 200-pound Starling became Notre Dame’s most decorated recruit in a decade when he chose the Irish in October 2021. He was the No. 18 overall player in the 2022 On3 Industry Ranking and the program’s first McDonald’s All-American signee since Demetrius Jackson in 2013. He picked Notre Dame over Duke, Northwestern, Stanford and Syracuse.
Starling is a Baldwinsville, N.Y., native, but played his last two high school seasons at national prep power La Porte (Ind.) La Lumiere, about a 45-minute drive from Notre Dame.
Notre Dame saw Starling as a key piece of its 2022-23 team before he stepped on campus. He became even more important when guard Blake Wesley declared for the NBA Draft after 2021-22. The Irish gave him extended run with the starters as soon as he showed up for summer workouts. He began the season in the starting lineup and started each of the first 16 games.
Notre Dame’s season ended March 7 with a 67-64 loss to Virginia Tech in the first round of the ACC tournament. That was also the last game for Mike Brey, who stepped down after 23 years as head coach in a move originally announced in January. The Irish went 11-21 and 3-17 in the ACC. The search for his replacement is ongoing.
Starling is the second Notre Dame player to enter the portal Monday, following grad student guard Robby Carmody.
Monday was the first day of the transfer portal window for undergrads, which runs through May 11. Grad transfers can enter at any time. Players who enter the transfer portal can return to their old team, but the team is not obligated to take them back.
