Mikal Bridges and the New York Knicks took a 2-0 lead over the Cleveland Cavaliers in the Eastern Conference Finals with a 109-93 win in Game 2 on Thursday. The series now moves to Cleveland for Game 3.
After the game, Bridges joined Charles Barkley and the rest of the Inside the NBA crew for a conversation. Barkley caught Bridges off guard with a joke about former Villanova coach Jay Wright.
“With all that great talent y’all had at Villanova, don’t you think Jay Wright was overrated?” Barkley asked with a smile.
Bridges played for the Villanova Wildcats from 2015 to 2018 under Wright, who coached the team from 2001 to 2022 and won two national titles. Bridges’ Knicks teammates Jalen Brunson and Josh Hart also played for Villanova under Wright.
The Knicks guard defended his former coach.
“Maybe Jalen is the only exception because Jalen was really cold coming into college. Everybody else, me especially, I had to redshirt, so that shows a lot. I couldn’t get out there on the court my first year. So, shoutout to Coach Wright, got me to where I’m at right now,” he said.
After Ernie Johnson apologized to Bridges for Barkley’s comment, “Sir Charles” clarified that Wright is a good friend, so he’s allowed to make these jokes.
Bridges scored 19 points on 9-of-12 shooting with three rebounds, three assists, and a steal against the Cavaliers. He played 40 minutes without committing a single turnover.
Josh Hart Quoted His Former Villanova Coach
Knicks forward Josh Hart led his team in scoring in Game 2 against Cleveland. He scored 26 points on 10 of 21 from the field, including 5 of 11 from the 3-point range. He also had four rebounds, seven assists, and two steals.
During his post-game press conference, Hart quoted his former Villanova coach to explain what analytics mean to him.
“I’m not a huge analytics guy,” he said. “They are a lamp post to a drunk person. You can lean on them, but it won’t take you home.”
When Karl-Anthony Towns asked Hart to explain his remark, Hart said it was a quote from his former Villanova coach Jay Wright.
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