Former Villanova coach Jay Wright, who won two national championships as coach of the Wildcats, stunned the college basketball world in April when he announced his retirement from coaching. But Wright, who walked away after more than two decades with the Wildcats and more than three decades in the coaching profession, isn’t straying too far from college basketball this season.
Wright will join CBS Sports as a college basketball analyst for the upcoming 2022-23 season, it was announced Thursday. Wright will return to the Final Four, where he led the Wildcats in 2009, 2016, 2018 and 2022, as a studio analyst for CBS and Warner Bros. Discovery Sports with all 67 games televised across TBS, CBS, TNT and truTV. Wright will also work as a studio and game analyst in the regular season both on CBS and CBS Sports Network.
“The years of being in the NCAA Tournament, and seeing how these guys work, the product they put out, how much fun it looks like, what a great job they do . . . I always thought if I got the chance to do this I’d want to learn from those guys and learn from the best,” Wright said. “A chance to do that full time is really exciting.”
Wright is expected to make his debut on Wednesday, Dec. 7 for Penn at Villanova on CBS Sports Network. His first appearance on CBS will be Saturday, Dec. 17 as a studio analyst for CBS Sports’ tripleheader with No. 2 Gonzaga taking on No. 20 Alabama before the annual CBS Sports Classic featuring No. 1 North Carolina taking on Ohio State and No. 4 Kentucky taking on No. 8 UCLA.
“I look forward to having fun with it,” Wright said. “I want to be good at it. I’ve seen the research these guys do. I see how well-prepared they are — guys like Bill Raftery, Clark Kellogg, Charles Barkley — and I’ve got to learn how to do the same.”
Wright, who was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2021, coached Hofstra from 1994-2001 and Villanova from 2001-2022, winning 642 games in his career including NCAA Tournament championships in 2016 and 2018.
“Jay Wright is synonymous with excellence and class and we are excited to welcome one of the greatest coaches in college basketball to the CBS Sports family,” said CBS Sports Chairman Sean McManus. “His passion, knowledge and ability to teach the game, combined with his charismatic and engaging personality make him a perfect fit and further strengthens our impressive college basketball roster. Jay is one of the most respected and successful voices in the sport and will provide unique insights, perspective and opinions.”
