Long before they were the ‘Nova Knicks, they were the wild ‘Cats.
A lengthy feature story on the trio of Knicks teammates who also won a national championship together at Villanova — Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo — detailed a frosty relationship back then between the latter two, including several physical confrontations.
According to the ESPN story, Brunson and DiVincenzo “usually ended up bonding over one specific thing more than any other [during their freshman year at Villanova]: Josh Hart was an incredibly annoying person.”
Donte DiVincenzo didn’t get along with Josh Hart at Villanova. USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con“Josh will tell you, I hated him,” DiVincenzo told the website. “A bunch of guys did. Jalen and I were best friends, and Jalen had to say, ‘Come on, he’s fine.’ But yes, that was our common bond.”
DiVincenzo and Brunson were first-year roommates, while Hart was a junior — thus, he played only on Villanova’s first of two championship squads in three years in 2015-16.
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DiVincenzo had what he described as “a tough year” personally, playing in only nine games as a freshman due to a foot injury.
Hart described himself in the ESPN story as “a polite a–hole,” while DiVincenzo said his older college teammate was a bully that he often clashed with.
In a recent appearance on Brunson’s and Hart’s “The Roommates Show” podcast, DiVincenzo acknowledged once swinging a 10-pound weight at his teammate in a campus fitness center with other students present after Hart had made a derogatory comment about him and then repeated it.
“I just blacked out during this moment,” DiVincenzo said on the podcast. “I had a weight in my hand, and I was like, ‘Say it again and I’ma swing this at you.’
Villanova’s Donte DiVincenzo, from right, Kris Jenkins, Josh Hart and Eric Paschall celebrate after win over Marquette. AP“And he was like, ‘No you won’t,” and said it again. And I swung the plate, and next thing you know I blacked out and we just started fighting in the weight room.”
Brunson and other teammates broke up the ensuing brawl, and Hart and DiVincenzo had to meet with head coach Jay Wright over what they now refer to as “the incident.”
It is unclear what was said by Hart, but Brunson, who wasn’t interviewed for the ESPN story, said on the podcast, “The plate should have hit him with what Josh said.”
The ESPN story listed other examples of friction between Hart and DiVincenzo at Villanova until Hart left for the NBA in 2017. The other two players captured a second NCAA title together in 2018, with DiVincenzo being named the most outstanding player of the Final Four.
The three players have become close friends since joining forces in the NBA, often needling each other in the media since being reunited with the Knicks.
Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Donte DiVincenzo have become closer in the NBA. Charles Wenzelberg / New York PostDiVincenzo said that his chilly prior personal relationship with Hart had no bearing when signing with the team as a free agent last summer.
Due to the Knicks’ various injuries, the three players logged the most minutes of any trio in the NBA since the All-Star break to help lead the franchise to the No.2 seed in the Eastern Conference and a win Saturday in Game 1 of the playoffs Saturday over the 76ers.
