Which recent Villanova alumnus would make the best mentor?

Happy Friday Nova Nation! It’s an exciting end to the week as we prepare for tonight’s Hoops Mania festivities. But as we prepare to focus on the future stars of Villanova Basketball, one article I found has me curious about some players from the programs past.

In preparation for the 2018 NBA Draft, Donte DiVincenzo reached out to former Kansas great and Chicago Bulls guard Kirk Hinrich for advice and to work on his game. It’s a cool story, but it got me thinking about what recent Nova grads I would reach out to for NBA advice leading up to the draft. Hey, it’s Friday, let me dream I could get drafted :)

There’s been a lot of great Wildcats that have found anywhere from limited to long lasting success in the NBA. Villanova has players that range from first round picks to undrafted free agents that could all offer insight based on their personal experience. But my question to you today Nova Nation, if you could only reach out to one Nova player from the past 10 years for draft advice, who would it be?

Kyle Lowry misses the 10 year cut, but Dante Cunningham is coming up on a decade since being drafted, by far the longest in this group. Maalik Wayns, Ryan Arcidiacono, and Daniel Ochefu all went undrafted and could offer perspective on needing to work even harder to get into the league. Darrun Hilliard and Josh Hart were seen as “value picks” and could speak to how they had to live up to that status. And of course there’s the much heralded group from the 2018 National Championship. Who would be your first call?

In other “news”, Brian Bowen Sr. gave up even more schools and names, Josh Green picks Arizona, and Josh Hart could start next to LeBron this season. Enjoy!

Bucks rookie guard Donte DiVincenzo received predraft help from Kirk Hinrich | Chicago Tribune
Bucks rookie Donte DiVincenzo received predraft help, including a lot of defensive tutelage, from former Bull Kirk Hinrich. The two got together in South Dakota, where Hinrich has settled with his family.

Brian Bowen Sr. details alleged illicit offers in testimony | NBC Sports
Father of five-star recruit took the stand Thursday.

College basketball corruption trial: Brian Bowen's father makes explosive allegations against several schools | CBSSports.com
Thursday brought serious allegations against a lot of big schools by the father of five-star recruit Brian Bowen.

Arizona Wildcats basketball: 5-star guard Josh Green commits | AZ Central
Five-star Australian guard Josh Green announced his expected commitment to Arizona on Thursday.

Kansas, Duke, UNC basketball schedules among the toughest | SI.com
Ranking the top 10 toughest non-conference schedules in the country, which range from the usual blue blood suspects to road-happy Texas Southern. The Wildcats get an honorable mention.

Laker Film Room: Josh Hart replaces Kentavious Caldwell-Pope in Lakers starting lineup | Silver Screen and Roll
Luke Walton swapped Josh Hart in for Kentavious Caldwell-Pope after just one Lakers preseason game. Why did he do it?

Sports betting: Unlike New Jersey, Pennsylvania sportsbooks have gambling on college games | Philly.com
Notes include the over in Vikings-Eagles and Vegas Vic's pick for Game 1 of Braves-Dodgers