Hall of Fame coach Jay Wright is stepping down after 21 years as men’s basketball coach at Villanova. This announcement was shocking considering he just led the Wildcats to the Final Four earlier this month.
Villanova announced Wednesday that Wright will take a new position as special assistant to the university’s president, Peter M. Donohue. Fordham’s Kyle Neptune, who spent 10 years under Wright as a video coordinator and as an assistant coach, will take over as his successor. A press conference is scheduled for Friday, featuring Wright, Neptune and athletic director Mark Jackson.
“Over the past 21 seasons, I have had the opportunity to live out a professional dream as the head coach at Villanova,” Wright said in a statement. “Patty and I have been blessed to work with incredible, gifted young men who allowed us to coach them and brought us unmatched joy. We cannot overstate our gratitude to the players, coaches, and administrators who have been with us on this path. It has been an honor and a privilege to work at Villanova, especially under Father Peter and Mark Jackson. “Now, though, it’s time for us to enter a new era of Villanova basketball. After 35 years in coaching, I am proud and excited to hand over the reins to Villanova’s next coach. I am excited to remain a part of Villanova and look forward to working with Father Peter, Mark and the rest of the leadership team. Once a Wildcat, always a Wildcat.”
Wright, 60 years of age, has been at the helm as Wildcats coach since 2001. He won two national championships, in 2016 and 2018. He has also appeared in four Final Four games. Wright was named Naismith Coach of the year in 2006 and a decade later in 2016. He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2021.
Wright has been sought after for many NBA head coaching jobs over the years, but sources told ESPN on Wednesday that Wright intends to fully retire from coaching. He had the experience of being alongside coaching legend Gregg Popovich for Team USA in recent years, but becoming an NBA coach has had its drawbacks for him. Wright shared with his inner circle late Tuesday that he was eager to move on to the next chapter of his life without coaching.
Neptune, 37 years of age, has been the head coach for Fordham for one campaign. He led the Rams to a .500 season, 16-16, a 14-win improvement on the previous season.
The news of Wright’s retirement sent shock waves throughout the college basketball community, where Wright is one of the most revered coaches. With the recent retirement of Duke’s Mike Krzyzewski, Wright was one of just three active coaches to have won multiple national championships, the other coaches being Kansas’ Bill Self and Rick Pitino of Iona.
Wright had a record of 520-197 during his 21 season tenure with the Wildcats, winning at least 30 games on six occasions, the sixth-most-30-win seasons in men’s Division 1 history. He won eight Big East regular-season titles and five Big East Conference tournament championships. Before joining Villanova, Wright was the head coach at Hofstra University for seven seasons, winning two American East Championships and making two NCAA tournament appearances.
Former Villanova player and assistant coach Baker Dunleavy stated that Wright’s legacy and work at Villanova will reverberate through all the players and coaches he worked with.
“Coach Wright’s true legacy will not be his championships,” said Dunleavy, now the head coach at Quinnipiac. “His legacy is the set of values he has instilled in his coaches and players. Those are obvious watching a Villanova game — and more importantly meeting a Villanova player. To him that is the most significant mark he could leave. We are all proud to be associated with him.”
