Villanova Basketball: Is Jay Wright possibly headed for the NBA or Broadcasting?
By Bryan Mauro
April 20th, 2022 is a night that may change the trajectory of the Villanova basketball program forever. Legendary head coach Jay Wright announced that he was stepping down as the head man of the Wildcat program. It was announced that current Fordham head coach Kyle Neptune, who was an assistant at Villanova for 10 seasons, will be the new head coach of the Wildcat program.
The second after Wright announced his retirement and it became public the rumor mill started swirling. It is important to note that so far nothing has come out about any health problems with Wright or any members of his family. He just seems to be retiring because he believes he has accomplished all he can in the game.
There is one rumor that I would like to address. The current rumor amongst some in basketball circles was that Wright retired as the head coach of Villanova to open himself up for NBA jobs, and not just any NBA job but becoming the head coach of the Lebron James and Anthony Davis led Los Angeles Lakers. It is quite a rumor and while the Lakers may reach out to Wright to gauge his interest. It is likely that Wright no longer coaches anywhere.
I will never claim to know what any person is thinking or what someone should do with their own money, but Wright wouldn’t make much sense going to the NBA. These opinions are my own, and I will get into the reasons why he won’t go into the NBA further. However, he has already accomplished everything that he has wanted to as a college coach.
He was the best coach in the game over the last 10 years and has built a consistent team that everyone expected to win every year. He has won national titles, made multiple final fours, and dominated the Big East over his tenure. He turned Villanova into one of the premier programs in the country. The NBA would tarnish his legacy.