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Dan Patrick
This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed Human. I turned off news altogether. I hate to say it, but I don't trust much of anything. It's the rage bait. It feels like it's trying to divide people.
Jay Wright
We got clear facts.
Dan Patrick
Maybe we could calm down a little. NBC News brings you clear reporting. Let's meet at the Facts. Let's move forward from there. NBC News reporting for America.
Jay Wright
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Dan Patrick
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Jay Wright
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Dan Patrick
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Jay Wright
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Dan Patrick
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Jay Wright
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Dan Patrick
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Jay Wright
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Dan Patrick
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Jay Wright
I'm told it's super easy to do.
Dan Patrick
@mintmobile.com Switch upfront payment of $45 for 3 month plan equivalent to 15 per month required intro rate first 3 months only, then full price plan options available, taxes and fees, extra fee, full terms. @mintmobile.com you are listening to the Dan Patrick show on Fox Sports Radio. Come on in. Stay a while. On this Monday, hour one. Fritz, he's here. Dylan's here. Marv, Paulie, yours truly in the back room guys as well as we always do every Monday, best and worst of the weekend. What you saw that you liked, you didn't like. We say good morning if you're watching the program, which you can do download the app Peacock and also the NBC Sports Network. We say good morning to our radio affiliates around the country. Whole question, play of the day, stat of the day, all to that forthcoming. We'll talk to Jay Wright, former Villanova head coach. He'll join us in about 20 minutes from now. Reggie Miller stops by. Marv Albert, hall of Fame broadcaster. He was on the call the last time the Knicks won the NBA championship. We'll start with that. With the Knicks beating the spurs, that was Saturday night. They win it four games to one. And I think history is probably going to show this as, oh, four games to one. It only went five. Well, keep this in mind that the spurs, if I looked at their chances of winning, okay, in the four games they lost, they were 91% chance to win game one, 72% chance to win game two, 99% chance to win game four, 95% chance to win game five. They had double digit leads. It just felt like they ran out of gas. And give credit to the Knicks because you wanted to have a team that had something in the tank. And they did. And that something was Jalen Brunson. If you look at the time spent leading in the NBA Finals, the Spurs led 72% of the time, the Knicks 24%. Four percent of the series was tied. You know, four games to one feels like a blowout, but it wasn't. You know, the spurs were in these games. It was just. You're waiting for a moment and the moment never happened. But the moment did happen for the Knicks and congratulations to them, certainly their fans. And Jalen Brunson is your mvp and he spoke about playing with these guys to win the championship.
Jay Wright
Words can't describe it, but I'll say I put a lot of time and effort into trying to be the best player I can be to try and
Dan Patrick
help a team win.
Jay Wright
Just really thankful I have the, the organization, the coaching staff, my teammates to have my back every single day. I think that means the most to me.
Dan Patrick
So we'll talk to his college coach, Jay Wright. He'll join us coming up. And I know this is a narrative that it still seems to be people are not going to get off this podium. You didn't think nobody, you, you didn't think Jalen Brunson could be. You're absolutely right. And you know what? Everybody else thought the same way. So for everybody who wants to point out that we didn't think he could be a number one, his own head coach in college, Jay Wright is on record as saying he did not think he could be this. He thought he might be a 2 or a 3 on a championship team. So move on from that. Enjoy your championship. I never understood this. When you, you win a championship and then you want to vent at everybody. It's 53 years. Be excited. Embrace was a wonderful moment for you and for the city. For the San Antonio Spurs, I think Wemby got exposed in a variety of ways here. I think he came off as petty. I think he came off occasionally as a guy who will give a cheap shot. I didn't like, you know, sort of how he ended the series. Go find Jalen Brunson. I mean, Jalen Brunson was all class. Take this, take this moment here to, to kind of say, look, I, I'm going to congratulate you. He didn't. He walked away. Now, I know there's chaos when you win a championship. Jalen Brunson went over to the coaching staff of the spurs to congratulate them on a great series. Keep this in mind when Wemby. Remember when he had the foul, that should have been a flagrant. Okay. In the, in the moment. Should have been flagrant. Brunson didn't do anything, you know, he didn't, he didn't say, hey, I want you to rough him up. I. He didn't do anything like that. He was class all the way. And I mean, he got caught up in the emotion. He's a guy who's probably been, I don't know, taken for granted, you know, probably doubted most of his career. But he showed that he can be as clutch as any player we've seen in recent history. Now, we already. I'm listening yesterday and analysts were saying, you know, he's a, you know, he's going to move up that list of greatest players of all time. Slow down. He had a wonderful year. Shea Gilgis is back to back MVP and won a title. People already have Jalen Brunson as the best player in the game. Jalen Brunson's a great player. Okay, but we don't have to get into compare and contra. Just enjoy it. How about we wait till after the parade? Okay, that's Thursday. Get the parade. Then if you want to get into. Is he the greatest Nick of all time? He's not the greatest Nick of all time. Willis Reed is. Or Walt Frazier, the greatest Knicks of all time. They won two titles, 70 and 73. Okay, Brunson gets there. Now you can have a conversation. But be fair to his predecessors. And it's not like Jalen Brunson is saying, I'm the greatest player in franchise history. Patrick Ewing didn't win, by the way. I reached out to Patrick Ewing after they won, and I said, congratulations. And he said, finally a world champion. And I loved it. That's all. Finally a world champion. And he's an ambassador for the team. But he was there courtside, and, you know, this is a team. It didn't matter. And I've said this before during the series, they're going to play better on the road than they will at home. And they did. Like, that's a closeout game. That's Brunson saying to Victor Wembanyama, all right, you want to try to punk me? You. You want to point that you're in my. You know, I'm in your head or whatever it is, or I'm in your head. I'm gonna. I'm gonna go buy you and shoot a layup. Like, okay, I'm doing this on your home court. I thought it was a message sent without trying because that's not who Brunson is. That was, okay, all right. You might be the future. You might be the unicorn. I'm going to go to your place, and I'm going to. I'm going to close this out on your floor. You need to learn something from that and give credit to Jalen Brunson and the Knicks. I get was every night somebody else. But Brunson, you put up 45 in a closeout game. Now you're in elite company. And we also. We'd like to do this. Well, where do they rank in history? Where's this season? Well, they weren't great during the regular season. They were good. And look, did I think the Celtics were better than them? Yes, I did. The Hawks, they're not good. Sixers. Not good. I thought Boston was going to be the team coming out of the east, but we tend to look at, well, who did they beat? The last four NBA champions. These are the seeded teams. This is the. The teams they went through. So The Nuggets in 2023, they played an 8, a 4, a 7, and 8. The Celtics in 24, 8, 4, 6, 5. The Thunder 8, 4, 6, 4. The Knicks 6, 7, 4, and 2. This is the standard out of the day brought to you by Panini America. In other words, if we're going to bring up, well, the Knicks didn't play anybody. Well, did the Nuggets. No. Celtics, Thunder. I mean, the Knicks beat a six, a seven, a four, And a two seed. Okay, it's all right. But where do they rank? Oh, they better than the 2017 warriors who went 16 and 1. I would say no, but I don't want to. I, you know, that's not the argument that I wanted to have today. Instead of looking at something that was truly magical and enjoying that the O1 Lakers went 15 and 1. Are they better than them? No, they're not. The 83, 76ers who went 12 1. Are they better than them? No. Now, in my opinion, I got Bulls in 1991, 15 and 2. No. Spurs in 99. 15 and 2. No, 89 Pistons, 15 and 2. The Knicks went 16 and 3. Are they one of the great teams of all time? Sure. I don't know how long the list is, but you get into this comparing and I told you so and you miss out on the enjoyment of all of this. And we've seen this with a lot of, a lot of fans. For some reason, you know, when you get a surprise team, well, you didn't believe in them. Yeah, you're right. That's the beauty of sports. Like, I didn't think Hoosiers, they were going to win the title, the championship in the movie I bet against them. But you know, Indiana football, that's what makes this great. The Seattle Seahawks. I mean, that's why we watch the Knicks. The Knicks won the title. I don't care who they went through. And yes, did they win by almost 15 points per game. That's impressive. That's an all time record, 14.9 points. All of their victories. Enjoy it, celebrate it. Although don't torch a bus or do stupid things like people were doing. Yes, Marvin.
Jay Wright
And the thing about the teams that they swept, you got to think about the 76ers.
Dan Patrick
If I just say the names.
Jay Wright
They beat a team with Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey and Paul George. The Cavaliers, James Harden, Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley. They made them look like they couldn't
Dan Patrick
compare to the Knicks. The Knicks were 3 and 1 when they were down by 15 or more points in the postseason. The rest of the NBA with that stat. 6 and 58. Best and worst of the weekend. We'll get to your phone calls, but when you think about it, spurs led for 72% of the NBA Finals and they lost in five games. Remarkable. 877 3DP show Tyler sitting by. He'll take your phone calls. Email address dpdanpatrick.com Twitter handle @DP show the Hurricanes over my Golden Knights. They win the Stanley cup, four games to 2. USA on Friday night over Paraguay. And they'll face Australia this upcoming Friday. Which poll question for the first hour of the program. Once again, former Villanova head coach Jay Wright will join us in about 10 minutes. Well, you mentioned it earlier, Dan, but best event of the weekend, Stanley Cup Final, NBA Finals, UFC 250 or the World Cup. It's a loaded weekend. Well, did you have a favorite? Oh, I, I thought you were gonna. Well, the basketball. It's 53 years and, and I remember when they won in 1970 and 1973 and, and they were on tape delay. But, you know, I've always been such a big basketball fan. I, I would say that, I almost said that that would trump the other ones, but then, you know, what President Trump did at the White House with that crowd, I mean, that was a pretty crazy. I'm not a UFC fan, but I, I was watching the spectacle that it was the hockey, you know, give credit to, you know, the Hurricanes to beat the Golden Knights in Vegas. Somebody's got to go pick up John Tortorello's clothes there that are still in Carolina. But I would say the NBA, I mean, the United States, I love what they, you know, it felt like, hey, we might have some offense here instead of, let's keep it close and have Tim Howard, you know, play great defense as our goalie. This feels like, all right, maybe we've got a little bit of firepower. I know it's Paraguay, but I'm looking for little victories here. If they get to the round of 16, great. Do I expect them to get further? I don't. But if they do, be fun. What else do you have? If they do make it further, will you say, I knew the entire time they were going to make it. Apparently, that's what you need to do. You gotta, you gotta keep reminding people of all the things that you do right or that you remember or. I said that. What else? What's your opinion of Wemby after this series? Better, worse or unchanged? I'm going to talk about that because I, I did mention that he's got, he's got some things to learn. I, I, I, you know, I'm a big fan of Wemby. I didn't think he came off well in the NBA Finals, but I keep thinking back. He's 22, and at times he acted 22. We'll take a break. We'll talk to Jay Wright. Your phone calls, as we always do every Monday. Marv Albert. Marv the Marvelous one. Will join us a little later. Reggie Miller as well. We're back after this on the Dan Patrick Show. Be sure to catch the live edition of the Dan Patrick show, weekdays at 9am Eastern, 6am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeartRadio app here. I have a podcast empire. It continues to grow and I have brought it here to iHeart. I'm also doing a live radio show from 3 to 5pm Eastern because my wife wanted to kick out of the house. It's called Stugots and company Live, which is available in podcast form right when the show finishes every single day. Some of the biggest names in sports, a lot of phone calls. I love you guys show. It's one of my favorites. A lot of interaction, guys not taking themselves too seriously. Those are just some of the things that you could expect from Stugots Co. And Stugots Co. Live. So listen to Stegotson Co. Live and our original podcast. Please subscribe, rate and review Stugots Co. And God bless football. Taylor's livelihood depends on it. Do it today and you can check all of those out on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcast or wherever you get your podcast. Lot to celebrate this summer. And you can do so in style with Miller Light. If you're going to celebrate the birth of our nation, that's 250 years. Well, Miller Light's been around 50 of those. 250. What did we do the other 200 years without it? If our soccer team is scoring a big goal or just a warm evening on the deck, it's Miller time in America. That's why I reach for a Miller Light and you should too. Miller Lite is perfect to kick off this summer or a sporting event. 96 calories 3.2 carbs per 12 ounces. It's a great choice without weighing you down. Simple ingredients, malted barley for that rich balanced toffee note flavors and you know, that iconic golden color and all American summer starts with an all American beer. Miller lite. Go to millerlight.com Patrick and find delivery options near you. Or you can pick up some Miller Lite pretty much anywhere they sell beer. It's Miller time. Celebrate responsibly. Miller Brewing Co. Milwaukee, WI 96 calories 3.2 carbs per 12 ounces. Eczema is unpredictable, but you can flare less with Ebglis, a once monthly treatment for moderate to severe eczema. After an initial four month or longer dosing phase. About 4 in 10 people taking EBGLIS achieved itch relief and clear or almost clear skin at 16 weeks, and most of those people maintain skin that's still more clear at one year with monthly dosing. Hempglis Lebricizumab LBKZ, a 250mg 2ml injection, is a prescription medicine used to treat adults and children 12 years of age and older who weigh at least 88 pounds or 40 kilograms with moderate to severe eczema, also called atopic dermatitis, that is not well controlled with prescription therapies used on the skin or topicals, or who cannot use topical therapies. EBGLIS can be used with or without topical corticosteroids. Don't use if you're allergic to ebglis. Allergic reactions can occur that can be severe eye problems can occur. Tell your doctor if you have new or worsening eye problems. You should not receive a live vaccine when treated with ebglis. Before starting ebglis, tell your doctor if you have a parasitic infection. Ask your doctor about ebglis and visit ebgliss.lilly.com or call 1-800-lilyrx or 1-800-545-5979. I turned off news altogether. I hate to say it, but I don't trust much of anything. It's the rage bait. It feels like it's trying to divide people.
Jay Wright
If we got clear facts, maybe we
Dan Patrick
could calm down a little. NBC News brings you clear reporting. Let's meet at the Facts. Let's move forward from there. NBC News reporting for America. Tires matter. They're the only part of your vehicle that touches the road, and they're responsible for everything acceleration, braking, steering, handling, tread confidently with new tires from Tire Rack Whether you know exactly what you want or you're looking for expert recommendations, Tire Rack has everything you need. You get started. They are shipped fast and free. Free road hazard protection, convenient installation options, including mobile tire installation. They bring the tires to your home or office and install them on site. And of course, the best selection, including the full lineup of Firestone tires. And they don't just sell tires, they test them on the road. On the test track, learn how the tires you want tackle evasive maneuvers, drive and stop in the rain, or just handle your everyday commute. They think of everything. TireRack.com Dan you'll see their Firestone test results, tire ratings and consumer reviews. And be sure to check out the current special offers. That's tirerack.com dan the way tire buying should be, we'll get to your phone calls as we always do every Monday. Best and worst of the weekend. Marv Albert a little later on, and Reggie Miller. We make way for the hall of Fame coach Jay Wright, of course, becoming a Hall of Fame coach at Villanova and got to see some of his players on display. What are you. Like, being around you? If we were watching the game.
Jay Wright
Good question, Dan. I. I sit at home alone with my wife, and it's. It's like I'm watching a game film after game. I'm. I'm getting a little crazy with some decisions sometimes that our guys make, but I got my wife there. Just say, like, chill, man. Just settle down, man. Settle down.
Dan Patrick
Are you yelling at the TV?
Jay Wright
I'm more like yelling at the guys, like. Like, McCann, what are you doing? No, just. Then calm myself. I kind of expect excellence from them, as I did when I was coaching them, but I'm just a fan. That's why I sit by myself. So nobody has to deal with it. Especially Mikhail doesn't have to deal with it.
Dan Patrick
Would you say to Josh Hart after Game 4, where he could have been the reason or one of the reasons why they lost that game in the closing minutes?
Jay Wright
That was the only game I went to that. That was an incredible experience in itself. But I was down on the court after the game, and he came up to me from behind, and he said, I was talking to Tim Thomas and Rick Brunson. He came up to me from behind. He said, I know, coach. I blew a layup and I didn't box out. I know. I was like, yo, dude, I'm not here to yell at you, man. I'm proud of you. I'm not here to yell at you.
Dan Patrick
When did you know that you had something special with these players? Not just Brunson, but, you know, Bridges with Heart?
Jay Wright
You know, each. Each one of them was. Was different. Like, there was a. There was a time when. When Jalen Brunson was a freshman, he came in really highly touted. Ryan. Archie Diacono was our starting point guard at the time. He was a senior. And Jalen won. We were in a preseason nit. Jalen won the MVP with. I think he won the mvp. Yeah, he did. And he was kind of playing to win the MVP as a freshman. And the other guys on the team afterwards kind of laughed at him. Like, dude, you know you got the mvp. But it was about. We all could have done it, but we were trying to win the tournament, and he got it right away. Like, he didn't. Right after that he completely changed. And Mikhail Bridges used to go against Josh Hart in practice. And I watched Josh just beat the hell out of him. And because Mikhail was skinny, he was red shirt in his freshman year, and Josh was always strong, and Mikhail would always just get right back up, never complain, come right back at him. And we all, in his sit out year, we all said like, this is something special. And Josh as a freshman would just take huge shots. I remember at Purdue just taking shots that you would say, oh, my God, no. And then they go in and just be like, all right, all right, Josh, he had that from the beginning. And so with each one of them, you know, knew they were special at a certain point.
Dan Patrick
And with Jalen, I talked to Caliperi last week. He said that you guys were competing, that you both were recruiting Jalen Brunson. Did he call you, I think from a tournament like, like West Virginia and said, hey, I'm coming after the same guy you're. You're going after.
Jay Wright
Yeah, we, we always did. We, we would always talk about recruiting, and we never beat him ever for a recruit. Usually the guys we would get that he was recruiting, at some point he would make a decision to go after somebody else. He even has a place at the Jersey Shore in Lavalette and not in Ocean City, where I go to, because he was looking in Ocean City. And I said, dude, I have to deal with you all year. I can't come down to my Jersey Shore spot and look at you again. So you can't stay in Ocean City. Pick anywhere but Ocean City. But it's really true. We never beat him. There was a point at the end, I can't remember who they got, but they. Somebody, they kind of went in another direction, which allowed us to, to kind of get Jalen. But we were, we were talking the whole time.
Dan Patrick
We're talking to Jay Wright, hall of Fame coach and former Villanova head coach winning national championships there. When you look at Brunson, you even said this publicly that you didn't think he was a one, maybe he was going to be a two. A complimentary kind of the way he was in Dallas, or maybe a three on a championship team. What is it about him that makes him made for these moments here
Jay Wright
then? I think he just proved it to everybody and proved it to me. I really thought the Dallas situation, when Luka Doncic was kind of the. The go to guy, maybe the little bit more wild scorer, but dominant, physical player, and Jalen was kind of the brains of the team and the, and the leader and the go to guy when you needed him, I thought that was perfect for him. And when he made the decision to go to New York, I never. We talked. I don't. I don't think he asked my opinion. I think he was just kind of talking it through, kind of telling me what he was going to do. And I didn't tell him what to do, but he specifically said, like, I want to lead a team. And I said, you know, go for it, my man. You got to trust yourself. But what. What he has done is taken. And he did this in high school, and he did it in college, and now he's done it in the NBA, which has blown my mind. He's taken his perceived inadequacies, like being too small, being too slow, not being athletic enough, and figured out how people are defending him and how to use that to his advantage. At his changing speeds, his physicality, his footwork. He. He uses that based on the fact that people don't think he's athletic. He's more athletic than people think. He's faster than people think. He's actually bigger than people think, too. They say he's 6:1, he's bigger than 6:1, but he uses that all to his advantage and holds no grudge against anybody that thinks that of him. He just does it to prove it to himself.
Dan Patrick
What is it that you taught these players that has helped them be successful in the NBA? What did they learn at Villanova?
Jay Wright
I think, first of all, they brought a lot to the table. Especially all three of them have parents that would say to them when they would struggle, you know, what does coach say? Listen to coach. Which sounds simple, but it's so rare with great players. I think the one thing that they all brought a lot of talent, they brought a lot of competitiveness. Our mantra at Villanova was the word attitude, that you. You control your attitude on each play, and. And you control your attitude on each day. So regardless of what happened in the game before that next day, you got to come with a clear mind, positive attitude, learn from your mistakes, be humble based on your. Your positive plays and your successes, and then get better the next day, get better the next play, have a clear mind the next play. I think that's probably what they took from us the most. And. And they've definitely added their own version of it in a highly successful way.
Dan Patrick
And what I loved about the teams that you built is you looked at, this is not one year like I'm building a team. I hope they stay three, maybe they stay four years and it's such a luxury now for a coach to be able to let them play when a game is on the line. Like, I don't have to micromanage them. And I always got into this with Caliperi. I said, john, you can't have these one and dones because they're still kids when they get to the tournament. And that's why, you know, they get knocked off. But did you. I don't know if you settled for this or did you avoid. You wanted one and dones. I'm guessing you just didn't get them, and then all of a sudden, you decide to have a different blueprint.
Jay Wright
That's exactly what it was, Dan. Like, all. All of these guys, and a lot of the guys that John got, we recruited and we said to them, look, you. You might be one and done, and if you are, great, but you have to come to Villanova with the mentality that you're going to be a part of something bigger than yourself, and that your best chance of being the best player you can be is being a. Being a part of this program and striving to get better every day. If you want to just go and play your way and put your talents on display for the NBA, there's other places where you can do that extremely well. But Josh, Jalen, Mikhail, all the guys that came with them to Villanova came with the idea that I want to go to the NBA, but I want to be the best student I can be. All three of them graduated. I want to be the best student I could be. I want to be the best person I can be. I want to be the best player. I have a lot of room. I have to grow. I want to do that at Villanova, and then I want to be ready when I get to the NBA. I don't want to have to learn when I get to the NBA.
Dan Patrick
Do you miss coaching now? I mean, this time of the year, you're in the Garden for game four, you have to say to your wife, you know, maybe I could coach again.
Jay Wright
You know what, Dan? I know that I'm done, because I'm sitting there at the Garden and I'm watching Mike Brown stick with. I'm watching him stick with Alvarado at the end of the game. And I'm thinking to myself, oh, my God, if this doesn't work, they're gonna kill. I. I don't miss this at all. I thought that was such a gutsy move.
Dan Patrick
Yeah.
Jay Wright
And I, I, I look at those guys and I. And you know I watch a bad call, and I look at Mike Brown and. And I think to myself, he's dying inside. I know he's dying. So I really enjoy being a fan. I really don't miss it.
Dan Patrick
Is that the best sporting event you ever been to? Aside from winning a couple of national titles?
Jay Wright
But no, you know, that's that night. I didn't go to any games. I only went up to that game because Rick Brunson texted me and asked me to come. And so I knew it was kind of coming from the guys. And our driver couldn't get our car within six blocks of the Garden, so I knew we were going to have to get out of there and walk six blocks to get to our car. And it just looked like it wasn't going to be their night. And I thought, like, in the third quarter, I was like, I want to get out of here. I want to get back to Philly. But I knew I had to stop and see the guys afterwards, so I wanted to stay and see him. So thank God I stayed. Because singing Frank Sinatra's New York, New York, with 18,500 people, singing Jay Z's Empire State of Mind, being on the court hugging John Starks and Marbury and Spike Lee and Tim Thomas and Jalen and Josh and Mikhail, that truly was one of the greatest sporting events I've ever been to.
Dan Patrick
Do you feel like you won a national championship?
Jay Wright
If you know what, in my heart, I. I don't know if it compares to. There's a unique feeling in my heart that, you know, they took me on this ride with them and, And. And all of us at Villanova, and. And we're a. We're a small, small part of it, just as fans. But I, I, you know, I woke up the day after, like, we won. Man, I feel so. I feel so good. It's over. And there was even a sense of relief, too. Like, when I wanted. As a coach, there's a sense of relief, like, it's over. We didn't blow it.
Dan Patrick
Were you going to game six?
Jay Wright
I don't think so. Unless. If they would have. If they would have asked me to, because they know I don't like to go to the games. If they would have asked me to, I would have. But I think they were so focused in, dialed in, I think they would. They were beyond, like, worrying about me at that point, so I. Probably not.
Dan Patrick
You had a suit on. It was like you were ready to coach,
Jay Wright
so, man, I was. I was a pure fan and enjoying every minute of it. And actually at. At game four, I got sick to sit next to Billy Lang, who was one of our former assistants at Villanova, who's now on the Knicks staff. He's in development. And to have him on one side, Patty on the other, watching those guys, it was really one of the best sporting events I've ever seen in my life and experienced, and I've never done it like that as a fan.
Dan Patrick
Well, congratulations. You know, whatever part you take in this, well deserved, because those players, they. They have something different. Maybe not the best players, but they're the best players in the moment for that team, and you certainly felt that way watching them. But congratulations, Coach.
Jay Wright
Thanks, Dan. Great be with you, buddy.
Dan Patrick
That's Jay Wright. He won a couple national championships. Yeah, I would understand that, being a coach, and you're watching your former players and you're getting back into that. I'm coaching them, but I can't coach them. They have a coach. The tenseness of that. I got to stay. We're getting blown out. I got to talk to them after the game. Oh, my gosh. They're gonna win this game now, it looks like. Yeah. I always believed in you guys. When you're down 29, I wasn't leaving. But good stuff, though. I couldn't help but think, what was Dante DiVincenzo thinking? Another villa Nova. All right. Did we settle on a poll question, Dylan? Yeah, I put those two up there. Dan, you want some early results? Sure, why not? Best event of the weekend. The Stanley cup final, NBA Finals, UFC 250, or the World Cup By a narrow margin. The World cup is beating out the NBA Finals 33. Yeah, I watched a lot of the World Cup. It was fun. You know, Ivory coast, you know, they're certain. Certain countries where you go. Yeah, why not? It's kind of like I'm. I'm looking for my Sacramento Kings of the World Cup. Like, nobody's going to watch this team, but I'm going to watch this team. And then all of a sudden, I'm rooting and my wife sees me. Where I go, yeah. And then she goes, team usa. I go, no, Ivory Coast. She's like, what? I go, yeah, Watching Ivory Coast. Yeah. Dill. Yeah. My. My Bosnia Herzegovina squad had a nice 11 tie against Canada on Friday. Yeah, that was fun. Yes. Yeah.
Jay Wright
Paulie Kirasa got its first.
Dan Patrick
That was awesome. Yes. All right, we'll take a break. We got phone calls coming up. 877-3-DP show email address dp danpatrick.com Twitter handle @DP Show. By the way, days since the last New York sports title for the Knicks it's been two days, the Giants it's been 5,244 days, the Yankees 6,067, the Rangers 11,689, the Mets 14,476, the Islanders 15,728 and the Jets 2973. Brought to you by Panini America. Take a break Play of the Day Next Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in the nation. Catch all of our shows@foxsportsradio.com and within the iHeartRadio app. Search FSR to listen live Eczema is unpredictable, but you can flare less with epglis, a once monthly treatment for moderate to severe eczema. After an initial four month or longer dosing phase, about four in 10 people taking EB gliss achieved itch relief and clear or almost clear skin at 16 weeks. And most of those people maintain skin that's still more clear at one year with monthly dosing. Hempglis Lebrekizumab, a 250mg per 2ml injection, is a prescription medicine used to treat adults and children 12 years of age and older who weigh at least 88 pounds or 40 kilograms with moderate to severe eczema, also called atopic dermatitis, that is not well controlled with prescription therapies used on the skin or topicals, or who cannot use topical therapies. EBGLIS can be used with or without topical corticosteroids. Don't use if you're allergic to ebglis. Allergic reactions can occur that can be severe. Eye problems can occur. Tell your doctor if you have New Orleans or worsening eye problems. You should not receive a live vaccine when treated with Eglis. Before starting ebglis, tell your doctor if you have a parasitic infection. Ask your doctor about eglis and visit eglis.lilly.com or call 1-800-lilyrx or 1-800-545-5979. I turned off news altogether. I hate to say it, but I don't trust much of anything. It's the rage bait. It feels like it's trying to divide people.
Jay Wright
We got clear facts.
Dan Patrick
Maybe we can calm down a little. NBC News brings you clear reporting. Let's meet at the facts. Let's move forward from there. NBC News reporting for America. Tires matter. They're the only part of your vehicle that touches the road and they're responsible for everything. Acceleration, braking, steering, handling, tread confidently with new tires from Tire Rack. Whether you know exactly what you want or you're looking for expert recommendations, Tire Rack has everything you need. You get started. They are shipped fast and free. Free road hazard protection, Convenient installation options, including mobile tire installation. They bring the tires to your home or office and install them on site. And of course, the best selection, including the full lineup of Firestone tires. And they don't just sell tires, they test them on the road. On the test track. Learn how the tires you want tackle evasive maneuvers, drive and stop in the rain, or just handle your everyday commute. They think of everything. TireRack.com Dan you'll see their Firestone test results, tire ratings and consumer reviews. And be sure to check out the current special offers. That's tirerack.com dan the way tire buying should be when you own your own business, you own every decision. Catch the red eye or take the 6am Make a new hire or promote internally. Celebrate a win with the toast at the gate or unwind at the lounge. Big props to this team. Some decisions are a win win, like earning eight times points on Chase Travel, Chase Sapphire reserved for business, the business card that gives back all you put in. Visit Chase.com ReserveBusiness to learn more. Cards issued by JPMorgan Chase bank any member FDIC subject to credit report approval terms apply.
Jay Wright
Oh my God.
Dan Patrick
The play of the day. This is the play of the day. Check this out. Now the face off at center ice. Net still empty for Vegas. And now here's a turnover. A chance for Ehlers. Bingo. Three nothing Carolina. And you can start to polish the Stanley Cup. The Canes right now are 68 seconds away from winning their second NHL title. Man, I like watching this kid. Nine goals in 45 playoff games prior to this season. He had eight goals during the Hurricanes run to the cup this postseason. That's your Play of the day. Play of the Day brought to you by the Z Kleiner engineered with restful sleep in mind, making it an ideal bed alternative. Healthy life starts with a healthy night's sleep. Visit z kliner.com danpatrick today to find a Z Kliner store near you. Chris and Syracuse. Congratulations, Chris. Hey, hey. Thanks, Dan. Yeah. Being a big knick fan since 1968, Saturday's win was awesome. And the way the team's been constructed, they could challenge the spurs and Thunder the next couple of years. And along with Wemby and sga, you have to shoehorn Jalen Brunson's name in there for the Future face of the league. And I'm so glad. When the Knicks beat the spurs for the NBA cup, they never raised a banner in Madison Square Garden. Now four or five months later, they beat the spurs again for the real deal. And they have a legit banner to raise to the rafters. And they can raise the other one too. And in the deciding game for the title, Jalen Brunson came through an historical way to earn mvp. And last week, Dan, you talked about Walt Clyde Fraziers deciding Game 7 in 1970. 36 points, 19 assists, 7 rebounds, and the team's best defender. And those are unheard of numbers back then. And Clyde did not get the MVP basically because of the great Willis storyline. But to this day, Clyde still a little salty about that. And I don't blame him. It'd be like giving OG and Nobe the MVP over Brunson because of his magical block and tipping in game four. And lastly, Dan, the Knicks down double digits in all five games and down 22 against Cleveland, 29 against the spurs and win both. And like you said in the NBA Finals, trailed 72% of the time. Man, there's two undeniable certainties in life when it comes to this New York Knicks team. No deficit is too big and no guard is too small. As Jalen Bronson leaves the New York knicks to their first title in 53 years. Thanks for the time, Dan. All right, Chris. Yeah, Wendy's got to get in better shape. Usually you think with youth, he's 22, he was gassed. I mean, this a long, long, long season. And most of these players, you know, maybe you're playing 30 games in a season. In college, Wemby seemed really exhausted. It felt like every game when you're missing your free throws, I always look, you know, when somebody is missing shots, front end shots, you know, they're tired, they don't have their legs. And it certainly showed with Wemby. I thought he played really well. He didn't play great. He had to play great for them to win this championship. Jalen Brunson didn't play great, but when he needed to play great, he did. And that's why I brought up, you know, we don't need to put Brunson at the head of the line. Greatest Nick of all time. Now I think what he did will be remembered sort of like Joe Namath when, you know, the jets were big underdogs. Now the Knicks weren't underdogs. The jets were 17 point underdogs against the Colts in 1969. And Joe guaranteed the Super Bowl. But, you know, that's it. I mean, Joe Namath, when you think of the jets, you still think of Joe Namath because he won a championship. Brunson, after 53 years, you can single him out, and rightfully so. But don't forget about Walt Frazier. You go for 36, 19, seven rebounds, six steals. You're playing against Jerry west and the Lakers. Don't forget about that performance. And they also won in 1973. Yes, Marv, yes. I think I said it last week. Brunson's probably in that Reggie Jackson category, where he might not be a Nick as long as Walt Frazier or Patrick
Jay Wright
Ewing, but what he did here, you'll always remember.
Dan Patrick
Reggie Jackson was only a Yankee for about five years. Yeah. But you still remember why he's called Mr. October. Yeah, great point. Yes, Dylan. I mean, Jalen Brunson's own dad said Patrick Ewing is the best. Nick, he's Alex in Utah. Hi, Alex. What do you have for me? Good morning, gentlemen. Best and worst of the weekend. So, I mean, gosh, wait, you know, so happy for Christmas here at Esport. Boy, that was just this morning. Just been salt in the wound. So worst of the weekend, just watching my spurs just collapse. It was. I mean, they got outplayed. I just still, it's just the morning after, I. Like waking up from, like, a breakup where you're like, I know that that didn't happen. Right. This is just in my. And then you hear all these little reminders that just remind you of, like, how promising it was, and then it just. Just how it collapsed and. Oh, boy. Yeah, it's. I. You know, I thought I was feeling good, but I. It's all coming back. All right. Well, thank you, alex. Gus in LA. Hey, Gus. Good morning, Mr. Patrick. Hope you and the boys had a great weekend. Not worse of the weekend, but heartbreak of the weekend. For the second time in his career, Yoshinobu Yamamoto has carried a no hitter into the ninth inning, only to lose it on the first batter of the inning with a solo shot to finish off with a one hitter. The best of the weekend. I know that you touched about it a little bit earlier about, where does this rank the Knicks? However, I'm not talking about dominance, because we saw the Lakers back in the day with the dynasty. We saw the Bulls back in the day, but when we talk about Finals teams, of showing the never say die attitude, the resiliency of this team being down so much. And even when the finals started, everybody's like, who's gonna guard Wemby. No one's gonna stop Wemby. This team is young. This team is that. Nobody gave the Knicks a chance except for those wearing orange and blue. Where does this Knicks team rank? Because they were the funnest I, I think I've ever seen. You both have a great week. Thank you, Gus. Yeah, it was always entertaining, but it was true to form. And I started watching the game and I said, nicks will go down double digits. I'm watching with two Nick fans. They're like, why are you hating? And I go, no, no, no. You watch. They'll be down 12, they'll be down 14, and they'll come back. And then they were down 12 and 14 and they came back. I said, no, I, I, I don't have a bias here. Like, I love a storyline. If you say Jalen Brunson is going to win a title and he's going to do it in dramatic fashion, awesome. If you said Wemby was going to win, awesome. I thought the Knicks were going to win. But I did want Wemby to play. Well, I've been a, you know, I've been on that bandwagon a long time just because I, I've seen a lot of unique players in, you know, 60 years watching the sport. And when you see somebody like this, but he's, you know, he's got to start talking to some people who are going to get him in shape. And I think that was the biggest thing that stood out, is he's going to get roughed up a little bit just because of his build. But, you know, he can add some weight, but he needs to have endurance. He needs to be in better shape than the guys who were going to be trying to rough him up. Red in Georgia. Hey, Red. Good morning. Daniel Daniels, man, thanks for taking the call, Dan. What I noticed about this spur team, man down the stretch in the fourth quarter, they realized that their youth was a problem. And they found out in a veteran player like Darren Fox, he is not the player in the fourth quarter that they need. And then you take a lot of time when those guard was going into Wimby in the paint or wasn't throwing him an alley, it seemed it wasn't coming from a natural easy alley. You supposed to be easy. They just throw it up there, hope he go get it. He tried to get it at an awkward position and they need to work with him together, the guards and Wimby and where his position where he want the ball. Well, he has to. Yes, he has to get in better position, but he's got to get in better shape. Our resident Knicks fan Rob is going to be in the confessional.
Jay Wright
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The Dan Patrick Show — Hour 1: Championship Weekend, Jay Wright Interview June 15, 2026
This episode of The Dan Patrick Show focuses on a thrilling sports weekend, with special attention to the New York Knicks clinching their first NBA championship in 53 years by defeating the San Antonio Spurs. Dan and his team dissect the Finals, celebrate Jalen Brunson’s MVP performance, and welcome legendary Villanova coach Jay Wright for an insightful conversation about his former players and their paths to NBA stardom. The hour maintains Dan's signature mix of sharp sports commentary, humor, and personal anecdotes.
Series Recap & Narrative
Jalen Brunson's MVP Run
Debating Historical Rankings
Knicks’ Playoff Path
Other major events: Stanley Cup Final (Hurricanes over Golden Knights), World Cup, UFC 250
Poll question for listeners: "Best event of the weekend?" Early votes favored the World Cup and NBA Finals.
Dan’s pick: The NBA Finals, for historical and personal reasons as a basketball fan
Insight into Wright’s viewing habits—intense fan, still watches “like I’m coaching” with his wife keeping him calm
Each Player’s Unique Development
Recruiting Battles with John Calipari
Brunson Surpassing Expectations
Villanova’s Culture and “Attitude”
Non-One-and-Done Blueprint
Enjoying a Fan’s Perspective
On the Finals Rollercoaster
“You’re waiting for a moment and the moment never happened. But the moment did happen for the Knicks, and congratulations to them, certainly their fans.” (Dan Patrick, 03:09)
On Brunson as an underdog
“He's a guy who's probably been...doubted most of his career. But he showed that he can be as clutch as any player we've seen in recent history.” (Dan Patrick, 05:45)
Jay Wright on leadership
"Our mantra at Villanova was the word attitude, that you...control your attitude on each play, and you control your attitude on each day." (28:08)
A coach’s pride as a fan
“There’s a unique feeling in my heart that, you know, they took me on this ride with them and all of us at Villanova...I woke up the day after, like, we won.” (Jay Wright, 33:20)
Perspective on ranking players
“Don’t forget about Walt Frazier. You go for 36, 19, seven rebounds, six steals...against Jerry West and the Lakers. Don’t forget about that performance.” (Dan Patrick, 44:45)
Dan Patrick’s style mixes sports expertise with humor and humility, urging fans to savor landmark moments. Jay Wright brings a self-deprecating warmth, proud of his former players but fully transitioned into fan mode.
For Listeners Who Missed It:
This hour is essential for Knicks fans savoring a long-awaited championship, sports fans interested in the building of enduring basketball cultures, and anyone who wants behind-the-scenes insight into what makes an underdog's rise so beloved in the world of sports. The Jay Wright segment, in particular, is full of genuine emotion and relatable stories of coaching, rivalries, and the joy of watching protégés surpass the expectations—even those of their own mentors.