Jalen Wilson’s lucky hat has been a key part of his postseason experience with the top-seeded Jayhawks

By Matt Tait     Apr 4, 2022

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Kansas forward Jalen Wilson answers questions during a media breakout session on Sunday, April 3, 2022 at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.

New Orleans — If you’ve seen Jalen Wilson off of the basketball court during the past couple of weeks, chances are you’ve seen him with his new favorite hat.

But it might not be the one you think.

Wilson, a starter for top-seeded Kansas who has averaged a double-double throughout the Jayhawks’ run to Monday’s national title game against North Carolina — 8:20 p.m. central on TBS — has been rocking his Big 12 tournament champions hat throughout the postseason.

It’s black, which is Wilson’s preferred color for his headgear. It sits cozily propped up on top of the third-year sophomore’s full head of hair. And it even has a piece of the net that Kansas cut down in Kansas City, Missouri, tied to the back.

“This is my favorite hat,” Wilson said this week with a smile. “It says championship on it.”

After winning the Midwest regional in Chicago, the Jayhawks received brand new Final Four hats and T-Shirts. Many wore them throughout the celebration and even onto the bus hours after the game ended.

Even Wilson tried it. On his way out of the United Center that night, he walked past me and smiled and said, “Got me a new hat.”

But he then he turned back to the old one for the trip to New Orleans, estimating that he spent no more than “a couple hours” with the white Final Four hat.

“I didn’t like it as much as this one,” he said this week. “I don’t know (why). It’s been working so I’m just going to keep wearing it.”

There’ll be a new hat on the line for the Jayhawks and Tar Heels tonight. If Kansas wins, you might keep an eye on Wilson to see if he’s a fan of the new cap.

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Written By Matt Tait

A native of Colorado, Matt moved to Lawrence in 1988 and has been in town ever since. He graduated from Lawrence High in 1996 and the University of Kansas in 2000 with a degree in Journalism. After covering KU sports for the University Daily Kansan and Rivals.com, Matt joined the World Company (and later Ogden Publications) in 2001 and has held several positions with the paper and KUsports.com in the past 20+ years. He became the Journal-World Sports Editor in 2018. Throughout his career, Matt has won several local and national awards from both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Kansas Press Association. In 2021, he was named the Kansas Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Matt lives in Lawrence with his wife, Allison, and two daughters, Kate and Molly. When he's not covering KU sports, he likes to spend his time playing basketball and golf, listening to and writing music and traveling the world with friends and family.