Looking ahead to 2016-17 Wildcats

Villanova and its fans are going to savor the 2016 national championship for much of the foreseeable future and replay Ryan Arcidiacono's pass and Kris Jenkins' game-winning shot in their heads time after time after time.

Sooner or later, however, the Wildcats must start preparing for the 2016-17 season knowing that the challenge of defending a national championship may be tougher than winning it the first time.

For Villanova coach Jay Wright, that means making sure his returning players have their feet back on the ground, ready to put in the work that was necessary this past season.

"The biggest challenge is going to be the ones that are coming back, to get them humble again and get them back to work," Wright said Friday after the Center City parade and rally for the Wildcats. "We've got to get them humble and hungry. I'm going to let them enjoy this for a while and then we've got some work to do."

The summer may be filled with rumors involving Wright, reportedly a target for the Phoenix Suns' head coaching job.

"I talk to all those [NBA] guys all the time, especially at this time of year about our guys and the draft," Wright said. "I never want to lie and say I didn't talk to those guys. But I have not been offered the Suns job and I'm not going to the Suns. I want to stay at Villanova. I do not want to leave Villanova this year."

The Wildcats can never underestimate the role seniors Arcidiacono and Daniel Ochefu played in their historic achievement in Houston, the last of their 117 career victories, a Wildcats record.

Despite his penchant for diving for loose balls and leaping press tables to track down an errant pass, Arcidiacono played in all 144 games (143 starts) the last four years, scoring 1,604 points (20th on the program's career list) and dishing out 535 assists (fourth) while dispensing immeasurable quantities of leadership, toughness, and intelligence.

The 6-foot-11 Ochefu fully came into his own last season with shooting and passing skills while anchoring a defense that became Villanova's calling card throughout the six-game NCAA tournament. Wright said several times during the postseason that Ochefu was the catalyst for the team's success.

"The intangibles of Ryan and Daniel was what you saw in the national championship," he said. "So that's what's going to be hard to replace."

The cupboard of players isn't bare, however.

Three budding stars return in Jenkins, Josh Hart, and Jalen Brunson. Darryl Reynolds, who filled in admirably when Ochefu sat out three games with a concussion, is ticketed for the middle. Phil Booth, who had a career-high 20 points in the championship game, and versatile Mikal Bridges have their sights on starting.

Hart and Jenkins will go through the NBA's draft evaluation process next month.

Villanova has three players ready to contribute. Freshman Donte DiVincenzo, a 6-4 guard, played in just eight games before suffering a foot injury and was held out the rest of the year. Eric Paschall, a 6-7, 260-pound forward who was the 2015 Atlantic Ten rookie of the year, sat out this season as a transfer. Forward Tim Delaney missed his freshman season after undergoing surgery on both hips and it is undetermined whether he'll be available next season.

The Wildcats signed two freshmen: 6-9, 265-pound Omari Spellman, a five-star recruit from St. Thomas More in Connecticut, and 6-10 Dylan Painter of Hershey (Pa.) High School. Spellman is a unique talent who can play inside or outside and should compete for significant playing time.

As his team begins summer workouts, Wright will look at a landscape that has seen just two private schools - Villanova and Duke - win more than one national title since 1985.

"It's close to impossible [to win], but you want to strive for that," he said. "What we care about is guys graduating, playing the best basketball they can, and taking pride in the university. However far that takes us - this year it took us to a national championship - is good enough for us."

jjuliano@phillynews.com

@joejulesinq