Recruiting Report: McKinley Wright (2017)
Champlin Park/D1 Minnesota point guard McKinley Wright is finishing up a grueling summer of basketball in exciting ways: he just produced a final five list of schools, he played his last game for D1 Minnesota on national television, and he…
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Continue ReadingChamplin Park/D1 Minnesota point guard McKinley Wright is finishing up a grueling summer of basketball in exciting ways: he just produced a final five list of schools, he played his last game for D1 Minnesota on national television, and he was outstanding Saturday at the Breakdown State Tournament.
NHR caught up with Wright after he played his third game of the day at Hopkins High School.
The challenge for Wright on this day? Playing against some of Minnesota’s best without returning starters Theo John (concussion), Brian Smith (broken finger), and DJ Hunter (broken ankle). Some players would get frustrated and let if affect them, Wright turned up his game against the state’s best.
Wright’s first opponent was 2018 top 25 talent Tre Jones. Jones and Apple Valley won the game but Wright had 13 points, nine rebounds, and five assists making half of his attempts and hitting three mid-range jumpers.
Game two was a big rivalry for Wright as he faced Maple Grove’s Wisconsin commit Brad Davison. McKinley came out on top leading his team to a 69-43 win with 26 points against the full strength Crimson.
Next up? Defending state champion Hopkins Royals and Wright’s AAU teammate Ishmael El-Amin. How was McKinley? Exactly the same as the game before. McKinley scored 26 points and led his young teammates (all the injured returning starters will be seniors) to another double figure win.
So when NHR spoke with Wright he was exhausted but always kind enough to chat with the local media. So how does he feel to have this summer of hoops behind him?
“It’s good to finally get home and get some rest and relax,” said Wright. “I took a week off but I’m back at it this week with the high school team back at it here at Hopkins for the day.”
McKinley now moves on to the next phase of his 17U summer: working out and getting ready to make a college decision.
“In August and September I plan to get my visits done,” said Wright. “In October I’m thinking about making my decision from my list of schools.”
In the middle of the event yesterday McKinley released his final five and they went in no particular order: Minnesota, Memphis, Dayton, Iowa State, and Xavier. Wright talked about each school with PrepHoops.com.
Iowa State: “They are a very good program. They need a point guard of the future with Monte Morris leaving, they’ve shown that they can win when they beat Oklahoma. I went to that game when they beat Oklahoma on ESPN and that was very big. I like how they make it to the tournament pretty much every year so that’s good.” – Wright
Dayton: “Dayton has a very good school. They have a big amount of players that weren’t looked at hard out of high school, guys that were overlooked. I think I fit in with that type of group in terms of being overlooked, working hard, and getting the job done. Also, they’ve been to the tournament the last four years.” – Wright
Memphis: “Memphis I think is a pretty good school and I like their style of play. Tubby Smith and I have a good relationship, I enjoy watching them. I’m looking forward to getting down there on a visit too. “ – Wright
Xavier: “I didn’t know much about Xavier before this summer, but they kind of hopped on board this summer. Former D1 Minnesota player JP Macura plays there and I talked to him a little bit about it, he likes it there. I like their style of play, they get up and run as well. Multiple positions can bring the ball up and I like how they make it to the tournament as well.” – Wright
Minnesota: “Minnesota is home. I think they have some really good freshman that will help make them a good team. Speaking of them there is Amir and Eric right there (McKinley motioned back as current Gopher freshman Eric Curry and Amir Coffey were a few steps behind Wright as Amir came to Hopkins to watch his former school). Eric, Amir, and Michael Hurt, I think they are promising and will help the team a lot this year. I think Minnesota is on their way up and they will be really good in the coming years.” – Wright
Next up for McKinley is getting dates together to see his final five schools. Wright has taken several unofficial visits to Minnesota, he was on an unofficial visit to Dayton in June, and he took an unofficial to Iowa State last winter.