LAS VEGAS — Last Friday, Champlin Park's McKinley Wright IV took the floor at Target Center in front of a crowd at the Timberwolves' Summer League Jam practice.
McKinley Wright IV glad to be 'coming home' with Timberwolves
McKinley Wright IV has heard the doubters through his time at Champlin Park High School and the University of Colorado. Now he wants to prove himself one more time.
August 13, 2021 at 11:53AM
Four years had passed since Wright was in the same setting, when he played his final game as a high school senior — a 60-54 loss to Tre Jones and Apple Valley in the Class 4A state championship.
To underscore the full circle nature of Wright's young career, his first competitive action in a Wolves uniform came Monday against Jones and San Antonio, with the Wolves prevailing 91-89.
Having teams pass you over in the NBA draft isn't always a bad thing and, in Wright's case, he was able to call his shot at where he signed a contract after he said he and his agency steered teams away from picking him in the second round. He ended up on a two-way contract with the Wolves, and is looking to make up for lost time playing basketball in Minnesota.
"I didn't know that I was going to be coming home," Wright said. "I didn't know that Minnesota was this interested in me. … I told my family, 'We didn't hear my name called how we initially planned, but this is better for me, going undrafted, betting on myself,' and I continue to look forward to proving people wrong."
Wright said it wasn't initially the plan for him to leave his home state to go to Colorado for college, but it didn't quite work out for Wright to go to the Gophers, even as he said he wanted to play for them.
"That was my original plan," Wright said. "We had some pieces coming to Minnesota with me. That was all of our plan. A lot of us from D-I Minnesota, we planned to come here, but it just didn't work out like that."
So Wright took a circuitous route back home after playing in the Pac-12 and averaging 14.2, 5.2 assists and 4.9 rebounds points in four years with the Buffaloes.
"Going into high school, not many people thought I could play at the high level at Champlin Park," Wright said. "Going into Colorado, they thought I was too small and couldn't play there. A lot of people see what I did at Colorado — the accolades, the wins, the leadership ability, and I'm here again. It's like I'm resetting."
On draft night, Wright said the Wolves were the first team that called, specifically coach Chris Finch. Finch said Wright caught his eye at the scouting combine in Chicago in June, and Finch, a relative newcomer to Minnesota, had no idea Wright had local roots.
"We see guys like [him], tough guys, smart, ball handlers — the more ball handlers you can put on the floor, the better in today's game," Finch said. "Just seems like these guys find a way to get themselves on to the floor."
Wright said he sees opportunities to get time in the NBA with the Wolves. That's one of the reasons he ended up signing with them.
"That's what I love to do — compete at a high level, fight for minutes when they're available and just continue to be that same person every day," Wright said.
Of course, getting to come home was a pretty attractive draw, as well. Now he's in summer league, beginning his NBA career in the company of several other Minnesota players who have made their mark in the league in recent years.
"We're just trying to continue to put Minnesota on the map," Wright said. "A lot of people sleep on this state, didn't think Minnesota was a basketball state, didn't think we had talented players. And here we all are, starting to make some noise all across the state, playing for different NBA teams."
The team's superstar ranted, calling the players “a bunch of little kids” and saying “internally, we soft.” Mike Conley joined him in saying the Wolves are too negative with each other: “We got to be able to talk.”
