Jay Wright's ascent in the basketball coaching world has been earned.
In Wright's first 3 seasons at Villanova, he took the Wildcats to the NIT. Then, his first step towards climbing the coaching hierarchy came when he took his team to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament in the 2004-2005 season. I
won't summarize every season for you, but Wright's path at Villanova has been up and down, to say the least.
The Wildcats were upset in the second round of the NCAA tournament 4 times from 2009 to 2015.
But then Wright's chase for a championship took a turn in his favor as the Cats beat North Carolina in the 2016 National Championship. Wright not only took the win with a sense of gratefulness, but he used the win as a stepping stone.
He knows exactly what kind of players he's looking for: ones with proven work ethic, a great attitude, and talent (of course). That's what separates Wright and Villanova from other programs. When a player from Villanova falls to the court, all his teammates come to pick him up. It's the little things.
Villanova had 3 recruits from the 2017 class listed on 247sports. The lowest rating of those 3 players came from Collin Gillespie, a 3-star according to the recruiting service but Gillespie saw the most minutes in the championship game out of the three freshmen.
Wright isn't necessarily as concerned with talent as he is concerned with the way his team fits together and gels on the court. Their recruiting class was ranked 12th in the country.
Now Villanova has two 4-stars and one 5-star in the incoming draft class. Most of the current team will likely stay, outside of Mikal Bridges, Jalen Brunson, and possibly Donte Divicenzo. They'll be missed, but Wright will reload.
He doesn't reload like other coaches do, though.
Wright takes in players and improves their game over several seasons. In an era of one-and-done programs filled with NBA talent, Jay Wright and Villanova simply keep playing their game. And it works best.
