The Guru Report: After Villanova’sJay Wright - The Next Face of College Basketball Is? —

By Mel Greenberg @womhoopsguru

Villanova - Yes, this is a women’s hoops place primarily but unwittingly your Guru was at Ground Zero Wednesday night for the Wildcats women postseason awards listening at the opening to several administrators who shortly were about to confirm a leaking report and stunning news outside Finneran Pavilion that Hall of Fame men’s coach Jay Wright was retiring.

In fact that they pulled this off can be akin to the scientists who worked on the atom bomb under the 50-yard line of Chicago Stadium.

I know Jay well and vice versa, even had the honor of being on the same Hall of Fame weekend docket last September with him in my receiving the Gowdy Media Award for Print.

As Wednesday coverage of the Wright move exploded, you will find a noteworthy reference to another well-known Philadelphian given by Nicole Auerbach off a roundtable with a series of questions in The Athletic - the one here on who will be the new face of college basketball.

Auerbach: I agree with Dana — I’m not sure that Jay necessarily wanted to be the face of the sport, even if so many of his peers would have nominated him to be it, if they could. But his voice has long carried weight, and I know based on messages I received Wednesday night from other coaches that there’s a lot of sadness that he’s leaving the profession. As we think about the idea of the voice of a sport, there’s something to be said for being someone everyone wants to talk to. And someone everyone wants to listen to.

We do still have Tom Izzo (though I’ll predict he’s our next HOF coach to retire), John Calipari (who will always be one of the faces of the sport in the one-and-done era) and Bill Self (fresh off a title).

But let’s be honest. The face of college basketball is (NCAA champion South Carolina women’s coach) Dawn Staley. I know the question meant *men’s* college basketball … but I’d make the case she transcends the women’s game. When she speaks up, we listen. And she’s never afraid to speak up about the sport, her worth, athlete rights, social issues. The face of a sport needs to promote it but also be ready to air its dirty laundry; Staley does that. Plus, she’s just so cool. I’d like to be her when I grow up.

Another option? Let’s just say the face of the sport is the player. Not any particular player — but all of them. As power in college sports shifts from coaches to players, it’s only fitting that we think about them. They can move freely from school to school. They can make money, finally. This era of college athletics is, actually, theirs.