Missouri dual-sport star Always Wright commits to Rhode Island basketball

Always Wright’s second season dedicated solely to basketball will occur at the University of Rhode Island.

The dual-sport standout from Missouri now works full time on the court and he committed to the Rams through a post on his personal Twitter page Thursday afternoon.

Wright spent a year in the junior college ranks at Northeast Oklahoma A&M. The shooting guard will carry three seasons of eligibility to Kingston and made his decision after a visit to campus this week.

More: Rhode Island basketball's Ishmael Leggett announces he is transferring to Pittsburgh

“This was the first year in his life he’s ever focused fully on basketball,” NEO coach Jeremy Jackson said. “His progression really showed from the day he got on campus.

“I was thinking, ‘OK, we’ve got a really good player — I don’t know if he’s going to start for us. I don’t know what he’s going to do.’ He was our glue.”

Wright passed for more than 4,400 yards and collected 52 total touchdowns as a quarterback at Joplin High. He decided as a senior to pursue basketball at the next level and enrolled with a program that finished 23-6 and reached the NJCAA Division II Tournament in 2022-23. Wright also claimed offers from North Texas, Buffalo, South Alabama, Utah Valley, Texas State, Bryant, Chattanooga, Illinois State and others.

“He can affect the game in a lot of different ways,” Jackson said. “He shoots the ball at a very high, efficient rate. He can make his teammates better.”

Wright averaged 14.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 1.8 steals per game last season. He lined up at both guard positions and used his size at 6 feet 3 inches to shoot over smaller defenders. Wright connected at 43.4% from 3-point range, including six games with at least four makes from deep.

One of those shots left Jackson with a sharp memory. Wright helped sink perennial power Indian Hills with a 3-pointer in overtime, as NEO held on for an 87-82 triumph. Wright finished with 16 points against a team that went 29-5 and reached the NJCAA semifinals — it was one of his 21 games in double figures.

“Not everybody has the makeup to do that sort of thing,” Jackson said.

Wright ran with Michael Porter Jr. Elite on the grassroots circuit last spring before enrolling at NEO. URI director of player development Christen Cunningham served as the lead recruiter — he's allowed to initiate contact with prospects and advance interest in that role. Cunningham and fellow staff members helped close Wright during his trip here.

“He loved it,” Jackson said. “He called me once and said, ‘Coach, I’m eating lobster tail.' "

Wright could help address a sore spot in URI’s offensive game last season. The Rams rated just 343rd nationally at 30.4% shooting from beyond the arc. Less than 25% of their points came from deep, a bottom-30 mark in the country.

“He’s a basketball junkie for sure,” Jackson said. “He’s just really embracing trying to become the best player he can.”

Wright joins an incoming class that includes High Point transfer guard Jaden House, Quinnipiac transfer guard Luis Kortright, Bradley transfer wing Zek Montgomery and junior college big man Tyson Brown. URI also expects to welcome a pair of freshman guards in Connor Dubsky and Cam Estevez. The Rams will add from within by debuting big man Jeremy Foumena, who took a redshirt year during a 9-22 campaign.

URI still has two scholarships remaining and could use them on junior college forward Buru Naivalurua, Bryant wing Charles Pride, Boston College forward DeMarr Langford or other targets. The Rams lost guard Ishmael Leggett to Pittsburgh through the transfer portal and seem unlikely to bring back Louis Hutchinson, Abdou Samb, Alex Tchikou or Sebastian Thomas after they each opted to enter. Graduate guard Jalen Carey has declared for the NBA Draft and entered the transfer portal — Miller and Carey both said in early March they could be open to what would be a surprise reunion in 2023-24.

bkoch@providencejournal.com  

On Twitter: @BillKoch25 

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Rhode Island basketball lands Missouri shooting guard Always Wright