FARGO -- Trayvonn Wright is already a member of the Waterloo (Iowa) West High School Hall of Fame. The senior will be a member of North Dakota State's men's basketball team next year.
"It reminds me a lot of Waterloo, but a little bigger," Wright said of last weekend's visit to Fargo. "I thought it would be a lot smaller."
Standing at 6-foot-7, Wright is on the small side weighing in at 175 pounds. But he can jump. He high jumped 6-foot-10 to win a state championship as a sophomore -- which automatically puts him into the Waterloo West Hall of Fame.
Since then, he has given up high jumping to focus on basketball.
"He will be one of the best athletes North Dakota State has had in just overall athletic ability," said Jake Sullivan, who coached Wright on the Kingdom Hoops AAU team based out of Ankeny, Iowa. "He's got to get in the weight room. But he's got a chance to be a very special player. He's got a ton of upside."
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One of Wright's Kingdom Hoops teammates was Harrison Barnes, a 6-foot-6 wing who has had offers from Duke, Kansas, North Carolina and UCLA. Nonetheless, Wright still averaged 20 points and 10 rebounds last summer for Kingdom Hoops.
Wright also had offers from Miami of Ohio, Southern Illinois, Montana, Montana State and Northern Iowa.
"He will be in a great situation at North Dakota State, especially the way they develop players," Sullivan said.
At Waterloo West High School, Wright will be a varsity starter for the fourth straight year. He averaged 15 points, 8 rebounds and 2 blocked shots as a junior last season.
"I think I can provide a bit more athleticism, but they are good already," Wright said of NDSU. "My hope is we can get back to the tournament."
Last year, the Bison reached the NCAA tournament. Because of NCAA rules, Bison head coach Saul Phillips can not comment on Wright until he signs a letter of intent later this fall.
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