Finding Mister Wright

Forward is a position of contradictions. Great big men require power and finesse, brawn and brains, flair and efficiency. The post is a place for yeomen whose often-uncelebrated work—crashing the boards, defending the rim, setting picks—is the linchpin of great basketball. The role is a natural fit for junior Keith Wright.

Wright, himself, is something of a mystery. The big man started playing basketball just his sophomore year at Princess Anne High School in Virginia Beach, Va.

“I wanted to play freshman year, but I couldn’t because I got a ‘C’ on my progress report,” he explains. “My mom said, ‘No basketball for your freshman year.’”

But the game came easily to Wright, who was averaging 20.5 points and 13.0 rebounds per contest by the time he was a senior at the Norfolk Collegiate School.

Since arriving at Cambridge, Wright has shown the ability to dominate the paint—not only against Ivy opponents, but also national powers.

Against Boston College last December, Wright went 9-of-14 from the field for 21 points as Harvard defeated the Eagles, 74-67, for the second straight year.

But the junior has also faced stretches of injury and disappointment. Mononucleosis sidelined Wright for four games his freshman year. Last February, inflammation in his Achilles tendon relegated him to the bench for five games and hampered him through the end of the season.

On the year, Wright averaged 8.9 points and 4.6 rebounds in 21.4 minutes of action per game.

“I think the first step for any player to become a marquee player is consistency,” Crimson coach Tommy Amaker says. “The biggest thing is also staying healthy…If Keith can do that, he can certainly be a marquee post player for our team.”

Wright’s progression into an elite forward would be an enormous boon for a Harvard team looking to capture its first Ivy League championship. The junior stands at the center of the Crimson’s two greatest question marks: experience and frontcourt depth. Wright is the co-captain, along with junior guard Oliver McNally, of a team without any seniors.

He and sophomore Kyle Casey, who will miss the beginning of the season with a broken foot, are the only forwards with more than 15 games of experience.

“We have a little more work this year because we’re younger, and we don’t have one of the best players in the league in [Jeremy Lin ’10],” McNally says. “But we have a lot of guys that are going to step in and hopefully become some of those dominant-type players.”

Wright has been working tirelessly to this end since he arrived on campus as a 6’8”, 245-pound freshman.

“This guy on Twitter posted about how [Wright] came into the Ivy League, saying he was an overweight big man with terrible hands,” recalls junior forward Andrew Van Nest. “Now you look at him, and he’s dropped like 25, 20 pounds. He’s an animal.”

This transformation has been the focal point of Wright’s preparation for the coming year, as he strives to stay on the court for a full season.

Aside from lifting weights and running sprints, Wright has also changed his diet. He credits nutritionist Tara Mardigan—the team nutritionist for the Boston Red Sox—for improving his eating habits.

Wright’s teammates have taken notice of the big man’s evolution.

“He got very strong this summer, got in shape a lot more,” Casey says. “He’s been playing very well, pushing our young guys. He’s been great, just kind of leading them on the court, showing them what to do, setting an example for them.”

Casey’s comment highlights another transition for Wright—that of becoming a team leader. He and McNally are the first junior captains since Jason Norman ’05 during the 2003-04 season.

“It’s an honor being voted the captain. It says a lot about what my teammates think of me,” Wright says. “I’m not really the loudest guy, so I’ve really just been trying to lead by example and lead these young guys in here.”

“He brings his hard hat every day,” sophomore guard Christian Webster says. “He’s definitely a hard worker, and he’s been a great captain so far.”

While he always brings it on the court, Wright also acknowledges the importance of staying loose.

“Staying stress-free is key. I feel like your mind plays a part in [staying healthy],” the big man says. “I [like to] hang out with my teammates. Andrew Van Nest is my roommate, my best friend. We always just listen to music, play a little bit of video games.”

Aside from using “NBA 2K11” and “Halo: Reach” as outlets, Wright can also turn to his family. His mother moved to Waltham, Mass., two summers ago and is a fixture behind the Harvard bench.

“Me and my mother are very close,” he says. “It’s awesome having her around, having her close, being able to talk to her.”

If Wright can also feel at home on the basketball court, he could be poised for a breakout season. With the graduation of Cornell’s Jeff Foote and Brown’s Matt Mullery, the mantle of best big man in the Ivy League is wide open and within Wright’s grasp.

“I see myself taking that [title],” Van Nest says half-jokingly. “I’m going to be fighting him for that spot, but I would not be upset or surprised if he got there.”

“I’m just playing my game,” Wright says. “All that is really just politics and people’s opinions. I know if I’m playing hard, helping my teammates, and I’m just doing the best that I can, whatever title that comes will come, but I’m not really worried about it.”

—Staff writer Timothy J. Walsh can be reached at twalsh@fas.harvard.edu.