Lorenzen Wright was found dead outside of Memphis, according to Wright’s family. The former Clipper had been missing since July 19.
Wright was considered one of the league’s good guys, as J.A. Adande recounts at ESPN.com:
The NBA world is so warped, the values so skewed, that sometimes the simplest acts can seem extraordinary. That was the case when Lorenzen Wright offered to drive his friend and colleague around.
But it was that small measure of grace, far from the normal image of the self-centered professional athlete, that popped into Johnny Doyle’s mind when he heard that Wright was found dead Wednesday. Doyle was the Clippers’ strength and conditioning coach when Wright first played in the NBA near the end of the 1990s, and Doyle was the beneficiary of Wright’s “good guy” persona you heard mentioned so often Wednesday. When Doyle wrecked his car, it was Wright who spent a week driving him to practice or wherever else he needed to go. Wright had a Chevy Tahoe, which he was particularly fond of because its red paint matched the color of his college fraternity, Kappa Alpha Psi.
After Wright left the Clippers to sign a free-agent contract with the Atlanta Hawks, he’d still drive Doyle around whenever the Clippers came to Atlanta. They’d go to Wright’s house or out to dinner. Wherever they wound up Wright usually had family members with him.
“He loved his family,” Doyle said. “He loved his dad and his brother. They came out [to Los Angeles] with him. I remember how much he loved his family. They were always around.”
Wright would expand the family base by raising six children of his own. A seventh died at a young age. One might think that losing a child would have been enough sadness for a family that had already had to deal with the bullet that left Wright’s father paralyzed. Now more bullets have ended Lorenzen’s life at age 34.
Adande also catalogs the tragedy that has befallen the Clippers’ 1996-97 roster.
17 Responses
Man, what a sad story.
Posted on July 29th, 2010 at 7:36 am
Alright after reading the full article I am now convinced we are cursed. I know a lot of people do not believe in all that stuff as a matter of fact I’m not sure I do. But we should start a petition so that DTS can hire some really good voodoo people to cone rid us of our curse. I know it sounds crazy but it couldn’t hurt, we should do it for the good of the players the staff and us the fans.
Steve Reply:
July 29th, 2010 at 1:32 pm
We would be better served to hire our own voodoo people to rid the franchise of Sterling.
Posted on July 29th, 2010 at 10:50 am
That’s really sad. Best wishes to his family and those close to him.
Josh Reply:
July 29th, 2010 at 12:02 pm
One other note. I was in the club with Malik the night he got killed by the drunk driver. It was KG’s birthday, and Malik was the nicest guy you could imagine. He and I shared some mutual friends. Just reminded me of that tragedy too.
Posted on July 29th, 2010 at 11:50 am
Tragedies aside, I read that the Pacers are thinking about letting Mike Dunleavy (Jr.) and TJ Ford go. I’ve always liked Mike Dunleavy’s game, and certainly wouldn’t mind having him in our line-up as a spread ‘em out 3 … health issues aside …
TNT57 Reply:
July 29th, 2010 at 4:55 pm
Why not, we’ve signed everybody else’s castaways.
NRM Reply:
July 29th, 2010 at 11:30 pm
Yes, after DTS fired his dad and stopped paying him, I’m sure Mike Dunleavy would give 110% to the Clippers.
Bongstradamus Reply:
July 30th, 2010 at 9:44 am
rofl!
JaySee Reply:
July 30th, 2010 at 12:44 am
If they’ll take Baron Davis in return I’m all in!
dial4bux Reply:
July 30th, 2010 at 7:44 pm
Bird says he wants a vet PG, and is actively shopping Dunleavy and TJFord.
I put them in the Trade Machine for BD, straight up, It works. That would give us 2 guys with some ability playing for their next contracts and cures the BD problem.
The worst that could happen, we’d have $19M more cap space next summer.
jmay Reply:
August 1st, 2010 at 2:54 pm
TJ Ford has no ability left. The Pacers have no pg — and they barely played him. he’s done. Bad back, no speed…cant shoot. I’ll pass, thanks
Posted on July 29th, 2010 at 1:49 pm
I’ve followed the Clippers for about 20 years now. One of the few Clippers I have met personally was the late Lorenzen Wright. I met him at media day at UCSB his rookie season. I was leaving the restroom as he was coming in the door and I said “Lorenzen Wright, glad to have you on the team.” He was genuinely thankful for the comment and actually struck up a brief conversation. I wished him good luck with the season and left being surprised how friendly and unassuming he was. Very different from the average NBA player. He became a decent player with Memphis, and it was too bad his career never took off. He obviously had some demons and it’s a shame that he couldn’t get some psychological therapy to help him deal with his divorce and transitioning to life as an ex-NBA player. He had a lot to offer and his death is truly sad. RIP Lorenzen Wright. He never knew how many people cared about him. This should serve as an example to appreciate all the people in our lives we care about — before it’s too late.
Posted on July 29th, 2010 at 2:44 pm
Very sad. RIP.
Posted on July 29th, 2010 at 4:54 pm
I just want to say RIP to Lorenzen Wright. I never met the man, but when I was a kid, he was my favorite player. I still will never forget the night that he grabbed 25 rebounds against the Sacramento Kings. This was a crucial game for Clipper Nation because this was a game during the shortened season where the Clippers were one game away from breaking the NBA’s worst start for a season record. I’ll never forget that day, it was such a big deal for me as a young Clippers fan to win that game.
And to the other guys talking about how we are cursed; stop with that nonsense. Even though there may have been some messed up coincidences with the Clippers franchise and tragedies, this is not the time and place to talk about it.
RIP Lorenzen Wright
Josh Reply:
July 30th, 2010 at 9:25 am
Well said.
Posted on July 30th, 2010 at 1:51 am
Davis to the Pacers would be good, regardless of how bad the players are who they get back, as long as they only have one year contracts.
Davis to anywhere for anything with one year contracts would be good.
Posted on August 3rd, 2010 at 1:58 pm
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