New York Just Put Three College Teammates in the NBA Finals Starting Lineup, and They're Chasing an Even Wilder Record!

Hold up, basketball fans, because what’s happening in New York right now with the Knicks is absolutely bonkers and deserves your full attention! Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart, and Mikal Bridges, our beloved "NovaKnicks" trio from Villanova, are not just playing in the NBA Finals, they’re 1-0 up on the San Antonio Spurs and are on the verge of some seriously exclusive company. We’re talking about potentially becoming only the fifth set of teammates in history to snag both NCAA and NBA championships together. Brunson and Bridges even won two NCAA titles back in 2016 and 2018, with Hart being part of that 2016 squad. This isn't just a good story, it’s a history-making moment!

How They Even Got Here, Seriously

You’ve gotta hand it to the Knicks front office, because getting these three guys reunited was anything but a straight line. It all started in the summer of 2022 when Jalen Brunson made the leap and signed with New York. Then, in February 2023, Josh Hart joined his former college buddy in the Big Apple after a trade from the Portland Trail Blazers. The final piece of the puzzle, Mikal Bridges, didn't arrive until after the 2024 season, a blockbuster trade that brought the band back together. They even briefly rolled with a fourth Villanova guy, Donte DiVincenzo, but he was dealt to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the fall as part of the deal that landed Karl-Anthony Towns in Madison Square Garden. Talk about a winding road to destiny!

Elite Company, And Then Some

These NovaKnicks have already etched their names into the record books just by showing up. Per ESPN Research, New York is only the second team in NBA history to start three players from the same college in an NBA Finals game. The first? That was way back in 1948-49 with the Minneapolis Lakers, who ran out DePaul grads George Mikan, Johnny Jorgensen, and Whitey Kachan. So, yeah, this is rare air! But the bigger prize, the one that truly sets them apart, is winning the whole darn thing. If Brunson, Hart, and Bridges can finish off the Spurs, they'll become just the fifth group of teammates to win both NCAA and NBA championships together. The other legendary duos who pulled it off are Derek Anderson & Antoine Walker (Kentucky, Heat), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar & Lucius Allen (UCLA, Bucks), John Havlicek & Larry Siegfried (Ohio State, Celtics), and Bob Cousy & Frank Ramsey (Holy Cross, Celtics). What a moment for these guys, being 1-0 up in the Finals, on the cusp of truly cementing their legacy. You just gotta root for these incredible stories in sports, right? Let's see if they can close it out and grab that championship!

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.