Jay Wright on Leadership and the Unifying Power of Basketball

Jay Wright has become a mainstay in the world of College Basketball. He was recently inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame, he’s won 2 National Championships (one in 2016 and one in 2018), and he took a team to the Final Four in 2009, becoming one of the all-time greats when it comes to college basketball. He’s led Villanova, the team he coaches, to 6 Big East Conference Championships and 14 NCAA Tournaments. In this episode, we discuss what it has been like for Jay to coach Brandon Slater (7:31), what he looks for in leadership (11:00), dealing with, managing, and developing defiant players (15:31), his experience with PeacePlayers in Israel (19:33), attitude’s impact on Villanova’s culture (23:57), how he thinks about his own identity (27:06), Father Rob and Jim Brennan’s impact (29:18), how he makes sure his emption is helpful and not harmful (33:47), what he does pregame and how he makes sure he’s where he needs to be (37:19), the difference between players and actors (40:53), and how he thinks about legacy and what’s next for him (46:22). Thank you so much to Jay for coming on the podcast! I wrote a book called “Shift Your Mind” that was released in October of 2020, and you can order it on Amazon and Barnes and Noble. Additionally, I have launched a company called Strong Skills, and I encourage you to check out our new website https://www.strongskills.co/. If you liked this episode and/or any others, please follow me on Twitter: @brianlevenson or Instagram: @Intentional_Performers. Thanks for listening. -Brian