Julian Wright played competitive basketball at Homewood-Flossmoor High School in Flossmoor, Illinois. There he led the Vikings to second place in the IHSA state AA tournament his junior year, losing to Peoria Central in the championship game, who were led by future NBA player Shaun Livingston. In 2005, he was selected to the McDonald's All-American team, and he was rated among the top ten basketball players in his class by several recruiting services)[1] due to his talent and versatility. At 6'8" and 225 lb (102 kg), Wright combines good size with excellent athleticism and skills, which allowed him to play numerous positions in high school, including shooting guard, small forward, and power forward.
College career
Wright entered the 2005–2006 NCAA season for the Kansas Jayhawks as the pre-season freshman of the year in the Big 12 Conference. Though he did not start at the beginning of the season, he quickly played his way into the starting power forward slot. His superior athleticism often allowed him to score baskets simply by virtue of his beating the defense down the court. A highlight of his freshman campaign may have been against the University of Texas in the Big 12 Tournament Championship game when he put an exclamation mark on KU's win with two magnificent breakaway slam dunks in the closing minutes of the game. During his freshman season, Wright averaged 8.5 points per game, but he was praised more for his ability to help his team without scoring. He was named to the All-Big 12 tournament Team and the All-Big 12 Freshman Team along with fellow Kansas freshmen Brandon Rush and Mario Chalmers. During the 2007 tournament, he was again placed on the All-Tournament Team. Wright garnered national attention for a 33-point performance against the Missouri Tigers.
For his play during the 2006–2007 season, Wright was named a third team All-American by the National Association of Basketball Coaches' All-America Team.[2]
Despite statements to the contrary, on Monday, April 9, 2007, Wright announced that he was making himself eligible for the NBA draft. He hired an agent, making him ineligible to return to school prior to the draft.
Professional career
Wright was selected as the 13th overall selection in the 2007 NBA draft by the New Orleans Hornets. In his rookie season in the NBA, Wright averaged 3.9 points per game and 2.1 rebounds per game.[3] On October 26, 2009, the Hornets picked up the option on Wright's contract for the 2010–11 season.[4]
On July 17, 2016, Wright signed with Turkish club Trabzonspor.[14] On May 1, 2017, he parted ways with Trabzonspor after averaging 13.3 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game.[15] Three days later, he signed with Italian club Pallacanestro Reggiana for the rest of the 2016–17 Lega Basket Serie A season.[16]
On September 21, 2017, Pallacanestro Reggiana announced the return of Wright.[17]
On August 30, 2018, Wright signed with Levallois Metropolitans in France.[18] However, in February 2019, Wright left Levallois after a dispute with the team.[19] He later posted a video on Linkedin explaining the situation.[20]
Wright is a bowling hobbyist, and was described by the Kansas City Star as having bowled at the University of Kansas's Jay Bowl "at least one night a week". He owns both a bowling ball and bowling shoes, the latter of which are KU's blue and crimson colors.[25]
