Notre Dame forward Paul Atkinson Jr. reportedly going pro
After one year with Notre Dame basketball, Paul Atkinson Jr. is saying goodbye to the collegiate level in favor of the pros, per Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports.
“Paul Atkinson tells me that he is planning to pursue a professional career, regardless of the decision that the NCAA makes on granting him another year of eligibility,” Rothstein tweeted on Monday.
There was talk of Atkinson petitioning for another year of college basketball, but that path seems to have been nixed. He spent a total of six years at the college level.
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Atkinson averaged 12.5 points, 6.9 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 0.7 blocks per game last year. He led the Irish in the rebounding and blocking categories, and his 2021-22 58.1 percent field goal percentage was 18th in the country. He scored in double figures 26 times over the course of the 2021-22 season.
Atkinson peaked at the right time, posting 26 points in Notre Dame’s First Four double overtime victory over Rutgers in Dayton, Ohio on March 16. The Irish’s season came to a close in the Round of 32 in a loss to Texas Tech.
The 6-9, 230-pound forward is originally from West Palm Beach, Fla. and spent his undergraduate years at Yale from 2017-20. In 2020, Atkinson was named the Ivy League Co-Player of the Year.
He initially declared for the NBA Draft but withdrew his name and transferred to play for Mike Brey and the Irish. He chose Notre Dame over Iowa, Miami, NC State and Texas.
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A look at the 2022-23 options for Brey
Several of Brey’s players have decisions to make about the future, as it was one of the more veteran teams in the nation. Notre Dame has six players who have fifth-year eligibility in 2022-23: Prentiss Hubb, Nate Laszewski, Cormac Ryan, Dane Goodwin, Robby Carmody and Trey Wertz.
If all of the aforementioned players return, Notre Dame will exceed the 13-player scholarship limit by one player. In other words, someone has to go from that group or another underclassman.
Additionally, Notre Dame is bringing in three 2022 recruits: Baldwinsville (N.Y.) La Lumiere School guard JJ Starling, Orlando (Fla.) Christian Prep forward Ven-Allen Lubin and Exeter (N.H.) Phillips Exeter Academy center Dom Campbell.
All three recruits are four-star prospects according to On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. The Irish class is ranked No. 18 in the nation according to the On3 Consensus Team Rankings.
