NCAA champ Jay Williams releases his top 3 candidates for National Coach of the Year “thus far”

Former Duke Blue Devils point guard Jay Williams shared his picks for the National Coach of the Year award on Friday via his X account. He played three seasons at Durham and won an NCAA championship in 2001.

After his short-lived NBA career, Williams is now working as an analyst at ESPN.

"My top 3 ranking candidates for National Coach of the Year thus far: 1. Mark Pope @KentuckyMBB 2. Jon Scheyer @DukeMBB 3. Bruce Pearl @AuburnMBB," he tweeted.

Jay Williams got into a bit of hot water with Kentucky fans when he was calling one of the Wildcats' games earlier this week. He called out BBN for their reaction toward former coach John Calipari's struggles at Arkansas. Williams had also challenged fans to name a better replacement for Calipari in April.

During his appearance on KSR radio with Matt Jones on Wednesday, Williams admitted his mistakes.

“Matt, I’m okay with being wrong. Yeah, I was [wrong]," he said. "I talk on TV for four hours a day. We get it wrong. We’re all human. I didn’t know who Arkansas at the time. I didn’t know who Big Blue Nation was going to replace John Calipari with.

Jay Williams also gave his stamp of approval for Mark Pope as he said:

"Mark Pope has been an incredible replacement. He’s exceeded expectations. ... Like, I’m not calling in to butcher John Calipari. He is no longer the head coach of Kentucky basketball. He has his own problems at Arkansas. He made that decision that’s on him. I think Kentucky has gotten better. I think Mark Pope brings in a new energy.

"I think what he’s done with all these transfers and the transfer portal, he’s gotten these guys to buy in, which is significantly difficult to do in today’s age. And I’m giving all the praise and credit to Kentucky basketball for it. They deserve it."

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Jay Williams wows fans with his half-court shot

On Saturday, the No. 1 Auburn Tigers play against No. 6 Tennessee, and Jay Williams was present for the ESPN CollegeDay Game. Before the tip-off, Williams invited a fan for the half-court challenge. If the student made the shot in 19 seconds with any number of tries, they would win $19000.

Before the fans tried, Williams gave it a shot and he showed that he still got it.

Williams also promised the fan that he would triple his prize money after he failed his first few tries. However, the student was unsuccessful.