Michael Wright (basketball)
Medical Park Trabzonspor | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011–2012 | Turk Telekom | ||||||||||||||||||||
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| 2012–2014 | Mersin BB | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2015 | Cholet Basket | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |||||||||||||||||||||
Medals
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Michael Wright (January 7, 1980 – November 10, 2015) was an American-Turkish professional basketball player. He also held Turkish citizenship. His Turkish name was Ali Karadeniz.[1][2] He played professional basketball in Poland, Spain, Israel, South Korea, France, Germany, and Turkey. He was murdered in 2015.
High school career
Wright played his high school basketball at
College career
At the
Professional career
Wright was drafted as the 39th pick in the 2001 NBA draft by the New York Knicks. After not joining the Knicks or any other NBA team, Wright moved overseas and switched teams almost every season. He was one of 8 players selected in the 2001 NBA Draft who never played in a single NBA game.
Wright started with
After the team was relegated to the
In 2005, he moved to
In May 2007, he moved back to Turkey and signed for Türk Telekom B.K. In September 2009 he has signed a contract with Turów Zgorzelec from Poland for the 2009–10 season.[3]
In July 2011, he returned to Türk Telekom B.K. for one season with an option for a second one.[4] In the summer of 2012, he signed a contract with Mersin BB.[5]
On February 3, 2015, he signed with
Murder
On November 10, 2015, Wright was found dead in his car in Brooklyn, New York, covered in trash bags in the vehicle's back seat. The medical examiner determined that his death was a homicide.[8][9][10] Two men were charged in his death.[11]
According to a family member interviewed after his death, Wright intended to return to Europe to play another two seasons before retirement.[8]
Two men were charged on November 1, 2016 – Mark A. Holdbrooks, 59, and alleged accomplice David Victor, 35, were charged with murder and other offenses after a yearlong investigation. Holdbrooks, Wright's longtime roommate, allegedly reported him missing on November 8, 2015. Bergen County Prosecutor Gurbir S. Grewal did not specify a motive or mention how Wright was killed but said he had suffered "head trauma."
See also
References
- ^ "Michael Wright got Turkish citizenship".[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Michael Wright become Ali Karadeniz". Salsabasket.blogspot.com. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
- ^ "Ostatnie wzmocnienia w PGE Turowie". Archived from the original on December 10, 2009.
- ^ "Turk Telekom Ankara announces Michael Wright". Sportando.net. July 13, 2011. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
- ^ "Mersin lands Ali Karadeniz". Sportando.net. Retrieved March 31, 2013.
- ^ "Cholet lands Michael Wright". Sportando.com. February 3, 2015. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
- ^ "Michael Wright leaves Cholet".
- ^ a b DeLessio, Joe (November 12, 2015). "Police Treating Former Knicks Draft Pick's Death As a Homicide". New York Magazine. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
- ^ "Arizona basketball: Ex-Wildcat Michael Wright dead at 35". Arizona Daily Star. Retrieved November 11, 2015.
- ^ "Former Farragut star Michael Wright, 35, found dead in Brooklyn". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved November 12, 2015.
- ^ "Two charged in slaying of ex-Arizona F Wright". ESPN.com. November 3, 2016.
- ^ "Michael Wright: Arrests Made in Death of Former NBA Prospect". PEOPLE.com.
- ^ Nobile, Tom. "Bergen County Prosecutor's Office barred from murder trial involving slain Knicks draft pick". North Jersey Media Group.
- ^ NJ.com, Myles Ma | NJ Advance Media for (November 28, 2016). "Mysterious ax death of ex-Knicks pick ended long career". nj.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "2 Charged In 2015 Murder Of Former Knicks Draft Pick Michael Wright". November 3, 2016.