Big Man Makes Decision
New Englanders have known Rashad Wright’s name for years as he was identified early in his high school career at Cathedral High School in Springfield, Massachusetts as a young player with lots of potential.
But for a long time, the big man had trouble realizing that potential.
He began to turn a corner about a year ago when he showed a renewed focus for the game, a commitment to developing into a major defensive presence, and a quickly emerging low post game.
“Over the last year and a half or so I’ve gotten a lot more focused,” Wright admitted. “I realized how important basketball was to me and since then I’ve been doing what I need to do to get better. I’m just hoping to keep it going in the future so I can continue to get better.”
Another factor that helped to push Wright’s development into first gear was his decision to transfer to South Kent School for his senior year.
“It was really more of an academic decision at first. I had to get my grades up and going to prep school was the best way to do it because there would be no distractions,” he said. “But the basketball was great too because it offered more exposure and better competition so that I could prepare myself for the next level.”
Academically and athletically, Wright got what he expected when he made the decision to go to South Kent, as his grades are now in order and his Cardinal team recently completed a very successful season.
But what Wright wasn’t necessarily expecting upon his arrival at South Kent was the impact that first year head coach Kelvin Jefferson would have on his life. Wright credits Jefferson with not only helping him through the recruiting process but also with “keeping me focused through the year”.
“It’s been great playing for Coach Jefferson. Our season didn’t end the way that we wanted it to, but overall it was a great year. Not just me, but all of the guys on the team, learned a lot from Coach and we have a connection with him that we’re not going to forget. It’s been a pretty memorable year because of it.”
Wright says he was looking for a similar relationship with his future coach, and he thinks he found it in Bobby Cremins.
“I did my visit last Thursday and Friday and I felt a great connection with him,” Wright said of Cremins. “He’s a great coach, very experienced, and he was honest with me. He said I had a chance to come in and play right away.”
Between that and Charleston’s beautiful campus, it didn’t take the Massachusetts native long to decide that he wanted to make the move down south for the next four years.
In Wright, Charleston lands the best available center left in New England, and perhaps the northeast altogether. The 6’9” big man should be able to make an immediate impact with his shot blocking ability on the defensive end, and if he can continue to improve at the same rate which he has in the last year, he could have a very nice career for Charleston.
Rashad Wright