All three were NCAA champions at Villanova, but the three former Wildcats appreciate that they will likely share the starting lineup with the Knicks as long as Julius Randle is sidelined.
Josh Hart has been joined by Jalen Brunson and Donte DiVincenzo as starters in the past two games, leading to blowout wins over the Hornets and Jazz, propelling the Knicks into the top three playoff spots in the Eastern Conference, and a home game against the Pacers on Thursday. Get ready for the game.
The importance and rarity of starting together in both college and the pros is certainly not lost on the long-time trio.
“Yeah, I’m not going to lie,” Brunson, who is fully expected to be named an All-Star for the first time in his career, said Thursday night. “Sometimes I think back to when we used to go back to school and compete in practice, corner each other, have little mini-fights. And when you look at where we are now, it’s really It’s special.
“So, yeah, it’s really cool to see. You don’t see it very often, if ever. To hear the starting lineup say, ‘From Villanova, from Villanova, from Villanova.’ It’s so cool.”
The Post found at least one similar example, although there may be others. For the 1997-98 Celtics, Kentucky teammates Antwon Walker, Walter McCarty, and Ron Mercer each started at least 62 games under former college coach Rick Pitino.
Brunson fell one point short of a 30-point game against the Jazz, but he did score nine points in 14 games in January, when the Knicks went 14-2.
He missed the first two games this month with a calf injury, but as DiVincenzo said after scoring 33 points on Tuesday night, the next man mentality is the key to Tom Thibodeau’s success. It’s a photo.
That means Hart and Precious Achiuwa seamlessly fit into the Knicks’ lineup in the absence of Randle (shoulder) and OG Anunoby (elbow) for the past two games, and Hart recorded his first career triple-double against Utah. .
Hart has played twice before this season, against the Wizards, where traded RJ Barrett was absent, and against the Knicks, who played shorthanded at Indiana on Dec. 30, when Anunoby was traded. He was included in the starting lineup twice.
“Cool, dude. That’s crazy,” Hart said. “That’s obviously something we never thought about. Of course, we were in the lineup together countless times at Nova, but the same players we were on the court with for I don’t know how many games we played in college.” It’s really amazing to do something like that, just to see the individual growth.
“I think the first time we did this was the first DC game at DC. It’s funny that the announcer said, ‘That’s from Villanova, too.'” So it was just cool. But it was definitely crazy. ”
As old friends often do, these three players, along with little-used reserve Ryan Arcidiacono, another Villanova graduate, often tease each other.
For example, DiVincenzo last week described Brunson’s rare dunk as “weak” and gave it a “1” out of 10.
Brunson returned the jab after Tuesday’s game, joking that it was “one in 10” that DiVincenzo was denied on his two dunk attempts.
But since joining the Knicks as a free agent last summer, Brunson scored much higher when asked about the influence of his former college classmates.
“I think his work is consistent,” Brunson said of DiVincenzo. “Each year he gets better and better. Right now he’s growing as a player and also his confidence in any situation comes from his work ethic.
“It’s special to see that, and like I said before, it was really cool to see guys that I worked with eight, seven years ago, whatever it was, and now… It’s pretty cool to see our situation.”
