Nova Hoops State of the Union - SOS

 

(photo is owned by Porter Binks/Getty Images, we do not own the rights)

Less than 10 months removed from Jay Wright's abrupt retirement, Villanova basketball is at a crossroads. Adapt or die.

When Wright announced his retirement following his 3rd Final 4 run in 7 years, winning National Championships in both '16 & '18, he blindsided College Basketball, Nova Nation, and most importantly, his program. A legend and architect of arguably the most dominant basketball program of the 2012 - 2022 era, Wright was done. The fire and passion that had propelled the miraculous run had fizzled out and Wright had "lost his edge", as he put it.

Months before the announcement, Wright notified Mark Jackson and Father Peter of his decision. Seemingly to both save the heralded incoming recruiting class and "keep it in the family", the trio allegedly chose to forgo a quiet national coaching search for a top 10 job in college basketball, and instead appointed former assistant coach, Kyle Neptune, as the lead man. Unsurprisingly, this caught Neptune by surprise who was fresh off a 16-16 (8-10 in Atlantic 10 play) campaign in his first season with the Fordham Rams, his only as a head coach.

In the days following the introductory press conference, everything seemed to be ok. 5 star phenom and future lottery pick Cam Whitmore as well as Mark Armstrong, reaffirmed their commitments. Fans reassured themselves that the program was bigger than one man and that the assistant coach that helped build 2 national championship teams would carry the torch onward and upward. ATTITUDE above all else.

As the season tipped off however, reality set in. Scrambled rotations, puzzling minute allocations, hero ball, poor game management, disorganized defense, lack of player development, inability to close out games, bad shot selection, incomprehensible scoring droughts, and no killer instinct... in other words, not Villanova basketball. ATTITUDE without leadership only goes so far.

The frightening part is, the current roster outlook for 2023-2024 is bleak to say the least. With only 1 incoming high school recruit in 2023, unless Neptune pulls some miracle in the transfer portal, you're looking at a starting lineup of Chris Arcidiacono, Mark Armstrong, Jordan Longino, Brendan Hausen, and Eric Dixon? Sheesh...

To make matters worse, the Big East coaching landscape is strengthening. New additions with the likes of Shaka Smart, Thad Matta, and Sean Miller, paired with Dan Hurley (barf), Doug McDermott, and Ed Cooley, makes this one of the truly elite coaching conferences in college basketball.

Let's be real, as the Athletic Director at Villanova, Mark Jackson had one job. Don't screw up when/if Wright retires or goes to the NBA. He appeared short sighted and panicked. It's time for Mark Jackson, Father Peter, and Jay Wright to face facts and start over. It's abundantly clear that while Neptune was a stellar assistant coach, he doesn't have the chops to run a program like Villanova.

Were calls ever made to some of the prominent and up and coming names in college basketball? Eric Musselman, Kelvin Sampson, Brad Underwood, and Randy Bennett to name a few. If not, feelers need to go out NOW. This is a premier job in college basketball, not some middle of the road Atlantic 10 pit stop.

Here's to hoping Villanova sweeps the Big East tournament and Justin Moore goes on a "Kemba Walker esque" run to a National Championship. I will gladly eat crow. If not though, the trio at the top needs to act now or risk a race to irrelevance.

Sincerely,
A spoiled and disgruntled Nova fan aka Vandy

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