BREAKING: JAY WRIGHT Retiring!!!

[kayako]

what the f---

[billyjack]

This sucks. Absolute living legend..

Very happy to hear that it's not health related, and he's going out on his own terms while he's relatively young and at the top of his game.

Love his modesty and his lack of a need for the limelight. No farewell tours or other attention hogging necessary.

Super guy. Now i'm thinking back to that Kris Jenkins shot. Jay watched it fall, and calmly turned and went to shake Roy's hand. Meanwhile my kids, wife and i were in a celebratory pig pile on our living room floor.

[stever20]

Good read from Jay Bilas on Wright retiring-
https://www.espn.com/mens-college-baske ... -needs-him

[Novachap]

So, what's new HLOH?

Well, this day was inevitable as time marches on. However, for all the bashing of Coach K's farewell tour it at least prepared the Duke faithful for his departure! No, never would want to see that for Jay, he is going out the right way. But damn.... this is a gut punch.

Neptune will be good, I think. But, in reality you rarely want to be the Man following THE Man. Hope is not a strategy, so I wish Kyle all the best in trying to maintain the culture and grace of the program. It will be difficult to say the least. That said, what an amazing ride us Nova fans have had with Jay. HOF and the Goat.

[redmen9194]

I think Jay Wright was the best coach in college basketball and it is hard to pick who would have been number two. He was a Big East guy through and through. The league will be fine in the long run and the short run. While Nova has been the dominant program in the league under Wright, it has not been so as to make the league a one or two bid league. The league overall has done great and will continue to do so. I think Nova will go through an adjustment period - it's hard to replace the best coach in the country and not take a hit. But Nova and the league will be fine. It's the most entertaining conference and we have well established coaches and programs that can compete with anyone. Thanks Jay - hope to see you take over Lav's spot on Fox.

[adoraz]

Well, this really sucks. He was the best coach in college basketball.

A couple things keeping it from being totally disastrous:
1. He went out on top after a FF appearance, so people can't make the narrative that Nova wasn't as good as they once were.
2. He's retiring. Not going to another college, not even the NBA. Simply retiring.

Overall it's still bad and totally unexpected news, especially since I didn't think this would happen within 5 years let alone this year, but for now just gotta hope Neptune can keep the team together.

[DudeAnon]

Happy for him, and the Muskies. The conference is now wide open and everyone is going to be fighting to take the top dog spot.

Coaching tiers now:
1. Miller, Matta, Cooley, McDermott
2. Hurley, Shaka, Holloway
3. Neptune, Anderson, Leitao
4. Ewing

[Hall2012]

And it sounds like he's giving Seton Hall one last slap on the way out. Ashley Howard was rumored to be close to joining SHU's coaching staff but now he may make a last minute pivot to the new Nova staff.

[ChestRockwell85]

First off, big ups to my boy gtmoBlue! Creighton for life.

This is what I can tell you that I am hearing and at this point sounds true. This is not health related, Jay and his wife are fine. I feel the decision was more based on the changing landscape of college basketball, transfer portal, NIL, etc. Jay is an old-school coach who tries to do it right. Recruit players right out of high school (with an occasional transfer to fill a gap), teach them the system, develop them, and have them buy in. Also, teach them to be great young men. Go to class, get your degree, etc. Although 60 by today's standards is not really old, Jay is understandably tired, and the thought of trying to deal with the transfer portal and things of that nature year after year has to be exhausting. He wanted to get off that rollercoaster but still be involved. He is still going to be working at Villanova as the Special Assistant to the President, and will be involved with events, fundraising, things of that nature. Jay is a people-person, and him still being a representative of the University is something we welcome with open arms.

In regards to the decision, I am hearing Jay knew this would be his last season sometime during the middle of the season. This was not something that came out of nowhere, it was something he was thinking about previously as well. I think it was made known to his staff towards the end of the season, but they were really trying to keep everything under wraps for awhile until things could get sorted. I feel that he wanted to wait to make the announcement but the news started to leak and he wanted to get out ahead of it, and that is why the news hit and spread so quickly yesterday. Last night he informed the team and has been in contact with the recruits. Tonight is the Annual Villanova Basketball Banquet, so I imagine a lot of this speculation will be made clear there.

In regards to Kyle Neptune. He was on Jay's staff from 2013-2021. He was there for both National Championships and he was instrumental on the bench and extremely instrumental on the recruiting trail. This wasn't an impulse decision, or a spur of the moment thing where Jay decided to retire out of nowhere and they were grasping at straws. Jay wanted Kyle. Kyle knows the system and knows the culture. He was going to be the choice all along. Also, Kyle has only been away from Villanova for just a year. He knows most of the current players, and at one point he was recruiting some of the guys coming in, so there is a relationship there as well. Will we lose a guy or 2? Possibly. But any more than that and I'd be surprised.

Lastly, what Jay Wright has done for Villanova and the Big East is immeasurable. He is a class act and a genuine human being. The memories will last forever. He will be missed on the bench, but we are happy he will still be at Villanova continuing to help the school and the program anyway he can. Thanks for everything, Coach!

[X-man]

First off, big ups to my boy gtmoBlue! Creighton for life.

This is what I can tell you that I am hearing and at this point sounds true. This is not health related, Jay and his wife are fine. I feel the decision was more based on the changing landscape of college basketball, transfer portal, NIL, etc. Jay is an old-school coach who tries to do it right. Recruit players right out of high school (with an occasional transfer to fill a gap), teach them the system, develop them, and have them buy in. Also, teach them to be great young men. Go to class, get your degree, etc. Although 60 by today's standards is not really old, Jay is understandably tired, and the thought of trying to deal with the transfer portal and things of that nature year after year has to be exhausting. He wanted to get off that rollercoaster but still be involved. He is still going to be working at Villanova as the Special Assistant to the President, and will be involved with events, fundraising, things of that nature. Jay is a people-person, and him still being a representative of the University is something we welcome with open arms.

In regards to the decision, I am hearing Jay knew this would be his last season sometime during the middle of the season. This was not something that came out of nowhere, it was something he was thinking about previously as well. I think it was made known to his staff towards the end of the season, but they were really trying to keep everything under wraps for awhile until things could get sorted. I feel that he wanted to wait to make the announcement but the news started to leak and he wanted to get out ahead of it, and that is why the news hit and spread so quickly yesterday. Last night he informed the team and has been in contact with the recruits. Tonight is the Annual Villanova Basketball Banquet, so I imagine a lot of this speculation will be made clear there.

In regards to Kyle Neptune. He was on Jay's staff from 2013-2021. He was there for both National Championships and he was instrumental on the bench and extremely instrumental on the recruiting trail. This wasn't an impulse decision, or a spur of the moment thing where Jay decided to retire out of nowhere and they were grasping at straws. Jay wanted Kyle. Kyle knows the system and knows the culture. He was going to be the choice all along. Also, Kyle has only been away from Villanova for just a year. He knows most of the current players, and at one point he was recruiting some of the guys coming in, so there is a relationship there as well. Will we lose a guy or 2? Possibly. But any more than that and I'd be surprised.

Lastly, what Jay Wright has done for Villanova and the Big East is immeasurable. He is a class act and a genuine human being. The memories will last forever. He will be missed on the bench, but we are happy he will still be at Villanova continuing to help the school and the program anyway he can. Thanks for everything, Coach!

Thanks for the info. My Xavier buddies and I are all sad to see a class act like Wright leave the coaching scene, but happy for him. And I suspect that you are right about Neptune. Anyway, hats off to Nova and Wright, and can't wait to get back into it next year with Coach Miller at the helm here.