Another day, another honor for Brunson
Villanova is going to need some extra room on the charter flight home just for all the hardware point guard Jalen Brunson has picked up here at the Final Four.
The 6-foot-3 junior added yet another honor Friday when he received the Oscar Robertson Award as the Player of the Year by the United States Basketball Writers Association.
“First, I want to say thank you to, again, my parents, just for raising me the right way, being a citizen first, being a student first and obviously a player last,” Brunson said. “I want to thank you for the nomination for this award. It really means a lot, especially in your honor (referring to Robertson). It was great hearing from you right before we got on the stage, and so just a lot of history in the game of basketball. And then just to be the first Villanova player ever to win this award, I’m definitely humbled by that. And thankful that I have the teammates I have and the community that I have at Villanova and the coaching staff, Father Peter (Donoghue, the university president), athletic director Mark Jackson.
“There’s so many people I can thank. And I’m just so honored to have this moment, especially with Coach (Jay) Wright, especially with this community that follows us around. And I’m just really humbled and it’s something I’m going to cherish forever.”
It’s the sixth Player of the Year honor for Brunson. He received this one from the Big 0 personally.
“I think this is wonderful, the Basketball Writers Association, I think they got it right,” Robertson said. “I must say also that things have changed a lot. When I won this award years ago they sent a letter to the athletic director and he told me I won the award. So it’s a little different now.
“But it’s really wonderful to see a basketball game today and see a young athlete like Jalen win this award, because I must say you did it quietly and your players relied on you to get these things done. And I think that’s a tremendous honor.”