The basketball world just witnessed the New York Knicks do the improbable. Standing opposite a 7'5" monster and the centerpiece of the San Antonio Spurs organization, Jalen Brunson pushed his team ahead 1-0 in the NBA Finals. On the road. Against the 60-win Spurs led by the league's most exciting rising star.
Brunson, a shorter, score-first point guard, was never expected to thrive at the NBA level despite being a highly-rated high school recruit and an elite point guard with the NCAA champion Villanova Wildcats -- that's exactly what made him slip into the second round of the draft. Yet look at him now. A 3-time All-NBA member and commanding his team to an early advantage in the NBA Finals.
I'm sure Robert Wright III has taken notice back at BYU.
Despite Kevin Young's repeated proclamation that Wright is the best point guard in college basketball, the point guard received little to nothing in the way of NBA interest through the draft.
Here's the crazy thing: Jalen Brunson's career path is eerily similar to Wright's, all the way down to the player's college stats. Only Wright did as a sophomore what Brunson did as a junior the season before he was drafted.
Robert Wright III 2025-26 season stats (SO): 18.1 PPG, 4.6 APG, 41.0% 3PT, 1.2 SPG
Jalen Brunson 2017-18 season stats (JR): 18.9 PPG, 4.6 APG, 40.8% 3PT, 0.9 SPG
Spooky, right?
I guess winning two national championships as a starting point guard makes a stronger case than a first-round exit, but you're seeing what I'm seeing, right? Brunson stands just one inch taller than Wright, and both are score-first guards.
After spending three years in college basketball, Brunson still took a few years to really break out in the NBA. Leaving for New York in free agency was the best decision he ever made, as it allowed him to get out of Luka's shadow, and now he's playing winning basketball in a bigger market. Oh, and he just scored a statement-making 30 points in game one of the NBA Finals.
Wright is approaching his junior season, the same year after which Brunson darted for the pros. No, BYU basketball won't be a title favorite in 2027, nor will Wright III likely garner first-round buzz after his junior campaign in Provo. But the road map for success at the NBA level is layed out for BYU basketball's star guard, and he seems to be right on pace.
Add us as a preferred source on Google