Knicks' Donte DiVincenzo here for the details, not a college reunion (though that part is 'amazing')

CHARLESTON, S.C. — Donte DiVincenzo obliged all of the photographers on media day, posing and smiling with Jalen Brunson, Josh Hart and Ryan Arcidiacono, the four Villanova alums joining forces for the Knicks this season.

But in the line of college friends and teammates, DiVincenzo veers closer to the serious and stoic Brunson than the playful Hart. So after watching from afar last season as the Brunson-Hart joint news conferences went viral, he arrives with no intention of making it a comedy trio.

“Yeah, I loved that,” DiVincenzo said. “I will not be wearing a shirt. I will not be wearing a shirt. I will not. Nah.”

DiVincenzo, like Brunson, sounds as if he’s been groomed on the teachings of Tom Thibodeau for decades. And he arrives not just as another former Villanova star to join forces with Brunson but as a young veteran who has been a part of teams with championship pedigree in the NBA — here for the details and work, imparting as much wisdom as he takes from his new teammates.

He is the lone addition to the Knicks' rotation this season after they reached the Eastern Conference semifinals last year. He signed a four-year, $51 million deal and provides much-needed defensive versatility and more shooting to the second unit to replace Obi Toppin’s minutes without the flash that Toppin provided.

DiVincenzo was a starter with the Milwaukee Bucks in 2020-21, his third season after being a first-round pick, but suffered a torn ligament in his left ankle in Game 3 of the opening round of the playoffs and was forced to watch from the sideline as the Bucks won the NBA title. He did get to the second round with Golden State two years later.

“It’s just being around,” he said. “Yeah, I got hurt in Milwaukee, but being around that, you get to see what it takes to win close games, Game 7s. But also [the Knicks] were in a battle last year. So they went through something that I wasn’t a part of. So they’re sharing stuff with me, and I think it’s a two-way relationship. Like I said, I’m just trying to fit in and I’m not trying to — no distractions, no nothing. Just fit in with them and be together.”

“He’s been around, with Milwaukee, with Golden State, Sacramento,” Thibodeau said. “So you’re getting a young veteran who’s had experiences. He’s got deep playoff experience. And so, he’s a gym rat. He fits in perfectly with our team. So just play to our strengths, learn your teammates. He’s fit in seamlessly thus far.”

DiVincenzo signed on with the Knicks as an NBA player, not to stage a college reunion. The connections are not just with his teammates — new and old — but with Thibodeau, a coach as focused on the small details it takes to win as Villanova coach Jay Wright was.

“He’s very detail-oriented, which I appreciate,” DiVincenzo said. “Going back to my college days, that’s why I’m in the NBA, playing for coaches who are detail-oriented. So I think Thibs can bring the best out of me.

“We embrace [the Villanova connection], for sure. Me, I like to personally try to develop each relationship with every single guy, coaches and everything. Even training camp, try to sit with as many different guys as possible, not start this whole 'Nova thing, which is great to have. Take all the jokes aside, it’s a real feeling to be able to share the court with guys you lived with in college. So that’s amazing, but also I’m Donte, he’s Josh, he’s Jalen. We’re all developing our relationships with everybody on the floor.”

By Steve Popper

steve.popper@newsday.com@StevePopper

Steve Popper covers the Knicks for Newsday. He has spent nearly three decades covering the Knicks and the NBA, along with just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.