Before the Fighting Irish tip off the season opener in Purcell Pavilion on Friday, the 2015 ACC Championship banner will be unfurled. It will be the last chance to cherish the postseason run of what arguably has become Notre Dame’s most beloved basketball team, a tough and competitive group that was likable at every step of its season long development.

If Mike Brey has his way, talk of last year will end with the ceremony which leaves us to wonder what to expect from the 2015-16 version of the Irish basketball team.

Starters

The starting lineup is set and will, most likely, stay the same throughout the season. Zach Auguste, Demetrius Jackson, and Steve Vasturia will return as incumbent starters with V.J. Beachem and Bonzie Colson joining them in the first five. Five returning rotation players might give you the idea that we should expect a revised version of the 2014-15 team, but Brey thinks there will be one major difference.

“We’re longer, Brey said after the second exhibition game. “We can block a few more shots. We get more deflections because we’re out in passing lanes which gets us into transition. I do think this team will need some easy buckets in transition more than last year’s group because they were so potent in the halfcourt. Being able to get a deflection or a blocked shot or an overplay steal, which I think this group can do, and go get some easy ones.”

Brey is encouraging his defenders to take more risks because, in his words, “We’re able to recover defensively and block a shot. We have not always been able to do that here.”

Starters to watch are Auguste and Beachem.

If Notre Dame fans see the Zach Auguste of 2014-15’s last eight games (64.5% shooting from the field and 8.1 rebounds per game), they will be pleased and Auguste will earn all conference honors. For Auguste, it’s all about consistency.

Beachem’s season was the opposite of Auguste’s. He faded at the end after losing confidence in his shot.

Brey worked on Beachem’s confidence during the off-season. “I don’t want him looking over his shoulder at me every time he misses a shot,” Brey said”. “He’s starting. He’s playing. I don’t want to mess around with him. I need him confident.”

Beachem is trying to add some aggressiveness to his game. “I’m working on putting the ball on the floor and driving it more,” he said. “It opens up my shot on the perimeter even more.”

The Rotation

One rotation spot is set. All others are up for grabs.

Matt Farrell has claimed a spot in the rotation, not just for five minutes a game to give Jackson some rest but as a guard who can relieve Jackson of ball handling responsibilities and allow him to duplicate some of last season’s catch and shoot scoring. Jackson was a 42.9% three point shooter last season.

“When Matt goes in, he can open the floor up. He handles the ball, so he can take some pressure off of Demetrius,” said Brey. “He makes shots, too. He can score. He’s really a key for us. I’m really pleased with him.”

“I give him credit,” Brey said after the first exhibition. “He has to play against Jackson every day. That’s a heck of a challenge. When he gets in the game, he’s relieved. His guy isn’t pressuring him like he (Jackson) does and isn’t driving it down his throat.”

“Getting Demetrius off the ball is something Coach and I talk about all the time,” Farrell said after the first exhibition. “He’s a scorer.”

There might be room for another guard in this season’s rotation. Two freshmen, Matt Ryan and Rex Pflueger, are vying for it. Neither is a good college level defender, at least not yet. Ryan is likely to get the first chance because he is an excellent shooter who isn’t shy about firing when he is open; but don’t dismiss Pflueger who is an excellent athlete who just needs a little time to catch up to the speed of college basketball.

Four players are competing for two big man spots in the rotation at most. My opinion is that it depends on Martinas Geben. Austin Torres will play because he defends well, rebounds, and finishes when he gets the ball at the basket. If Geben shows the toughness needed to be an effective ACC big man, he will join Torres in the rotation. If he doesn’t, A.J. Burgett will have to surprise us, or Elijah Burns will have to grow up fast for the rotation to accommodate two big men off the bench.

There was a time when Brey’s rotation would be set at the start of the season and would stay that way for the duration. That has not been the case the last two seasons, the first by necessity and the second because players developed during the season. With three talented freshmen and a sophomore big man trying to earn playing time, can we expect more of the same in 2015-16?

“I love our freshmen,” Brey said. “Our freshmen really are very good players. They feel they belong. Pflueger competes and defends. Ryan obviously can really shoot the basketball.

“I’ve been really pleased with what Martin Geben has given us. Torres delivered in that role last year. Elijah Burns, he’s got a great presence. I’ve never had a freshman talk so much. He talks like he’s a senior out there.

“We’ve got a lot to work with,” Brey said. “We’ve got a little more time before we figure out what our rotation is. They’ve made it hard on me, and that’s a good thing.”

Leadership

Pat Connaughton added his name to the list of outstanding leaders who have played for Mike Brey that includes Rob Kurz and Tory Jackson. What made leadership on last season’s Irish so different was how Jerian Grant emerged as a leader alongside Connaughton. As much as the Irish might miss the talent of those two players, their leadership will be even harder to replace.

Seniors A.J. Burgett and Zach Auguste and junior Demetrius Jackson were elected team captains. Of the three, Jackson is the voice that must emerge for the team to succeed. Auguste and/or Burgett can be brought along like Grant was last season.

Jackson is the ass kicker, the guy who expects a lot of himself and just as much from everyone else. He is thoughtful, introspective, and smart, a young man who is capable of recognizing that he needs to be a little more even tempered as an upperclassman to command the respect of his teammates. The seniors need to own their last season at Notre Dame, and part of owning it is giving the daily effort they see from Jackson and, for that matter, Jackson’s classmates. If they don’t, Jackson will challenge them. How they react will define team dynamics for the season.

I framed last season in the context of Bruce Tuckman’s stages of team development. That cycle starts anew each season, so watch the team’s progress across the continuum during the non-conference schedule, and pay attention to how the leaders behave at each stage. It will determine whether and when the team gets to the performing stage.