The New York Knicks won their first NBA title in 53 years, thanks in large part to former Villanova Wildcats players on the team. Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, and Mikal Bridges are all products of the Wildcats’ basketball program under head coach Jay Wright.
Unfortunately for one of Wright’s former players, Donte DiVincenzo, he was not part of the “Nova Knicks” championship party. DiVincenzo played for a season with the Knicks in the 2023-24 campaign, when he got reunited with Brunson, Hart, Bridges and another former Villanova teammate, Ryan Arcidiacono.
However, Hart was traded by the Knicks in October of 2024 to the Minnesota Timberwolves, along with Keita Bates-Diop, Julius Randle, and a protected first-round pick, in a three-team deal that landed New York star big man Karl-Anthony Towns.
Of course, Towns turned out to be a vital cog in the Knicks’ championship run, which essentially makes New York’s decision to part ways with DiVincenzo worth it.
After the Knicks defeated Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs in Game 6 of the 2026 NBA Finals to clinch the franchise’s first championship since 1973, Wright sent an appreciative message to DiVincenzo, which he revealed in a recent appearance on “You Better You Bet.”
“I texted Donte immediately after the game that, ‘You set the foundation for what this team is today,'” Wright said.
The two-time Naismith College Coach of the Year winner, however, reminded that DiVincenzo also has an NBA ring, which makes him feel a little better about his former player. DiVincenzo won an NBA championship before his former Wildcats teammates, as he helped Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks get to the top of the league in 2021.
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