WHERE IT ALL STARTED
In 2005, Julian Wright was Mr. Basketball Illinois (best in-state player) and selected as a McDonald’s All-American (ranked #8 by rivals.com). He played the next 2 years collegiately at a high-major university such as The University of Kansas. Wright went on to play his first 4 years as a professional basketball player in the NBA (2007 1st round, 13th pick overall - New Orleans Hornets 2007-2010 | Toronto Raptors 2010-2011). Lastly, Wright played in the NBA Development League (G-League) with the Austin Toros (2012 Champion) before enjoying overseas basketball for 10 straight years.
2007 NBA Draft Night - Coach JuJu shaking hands with former NBA Commissioner, David Stern.
What allows Julian's basketball training to stand out is that he's lived it; he has been trained by elite basketball and sport performance trainers who train the same elite players seen in the NBA today. These trainers were keen to assess what he needed to work on, yet shaping his career by encouraging him to continuously work on various skills. His résumé certainly makes it easy to define him as an ALL-PURPOSE player.
At 6 feet 8 inches in height while weighing 235 pounds, Wright played point guard in high school, power forward at The University of Kansas, small forward in the NBA, and power forward/center overseas. Every stop of the way, he worked on his skills even if certain skill sets of his were not heavily utilized by coaches during certain (parts of) seasons depending on their philosophy.
Julian has reached a point where he fully understands the nuances of progressions in skill sets that are detected by those in positions who can advance one’s athletic career. His goal is to assist clients with getting ahead of the curve.
Wright has developed a keen sense of what high school coaches look for in middle schoolers, what college coaches look for in high schoolers, what general managers look for in pro draft prospects, and what international teams look for in American (USA passport) players. (It’s a completely different style of basketball played overseas.)
In closing, Coach JuJu's desire is to convert players into Jacks and Janes of all trades, masters of multiple skills. As in the case of various industries, employers are seeking employees who can wear different hats regardless of their official title within a particular organization.
Now, it’s no different within the basketball world as it’s common to see guards posting up and being one of the team’s best rebounders (i.e., Donovan Mitchell, Luka Dončić and Russell Westbrook) as well as front court players who are their team’s best passer; seemingly walking and breathing triple-doubles (e.g., Nikola Jokić, Luka Donćić, Draymond Green, and Giannis Antetokounmpo).
Coach JuJu was usually lined up next to former NBA teammate Chris Paul
Learn more about expectations during private/semi-private lessons along with our "NEW-TO-DFW" Special Rates HERE!
"BE TRAINED LIKE A PRO... BY A PRO!"
Accomplishments & Experience
HIGH SCHOOL
(2001-2005)
Homewood-Flossmoor High School (15 miles south of Chicago, IL)
3-year Varsity Starter
2004: IHSA Class AA State Final Runner-Up [Lost to Shaun Livingston’s Team, Peoria Central High School (Peoria, IL)]
3rd-Team All-State Selection
AAU
Nike Peach Jam Champion & MVP (Illinois Warriors)
2005:
Illinois Mr. Basketball (Best high school player in the State of Illinois)
2nd-team Parade All-American
Jordan Classic Participant
McDonald’s All-American
Ranked 8th Overall by Rivals.com
NCAA
(2005-2007)
University of Kansas
2006:
Big 12 Regular Conference Champion
Big 12 Tournament Champion
Big 12 All-Tournament Team
Big 12 All-Rookie Team
2007:
Big 12 Regular Conference Champion
Big 12 Tournament Champion
3rd-Team All-American (National Association of Basketball Coaches)
NBA/BIG3
(2007-2012, 2019, 2021-2022)
New Orleans Hornets (now called New Orleans Pelicans)
2007-2010:
1st Round, 13th pick
2 consecutive playoff appearances (2008, 2009)
2010-2011:
Traded to Toronto Raptors
Austin Toros (now called Austin Spurs)
2012:
NBDL/NBA G-League Champion
BIG3
2019
Participant
Semifinalist
4th Place Finish
2021
Participant
2022
Participant
INTERNATIONAL
(2012-2022)
Israel (2012-2013)
Defensive Player of the Year
Russia (2013-2014)
EuroChallenge Participant
Greece (2014)
EuroLeague participant
Israel (2015)
Israeli League Rebounding Leader
Puerto Rico (2015)
Puerto Rican League Semifinalist
Italy (2015-2016)
Italian League All-Star Selection
EuroCup Participant
EuroCup Semifinalist
All-EuroCup 2nd Team
Italian League Quarterfinalist
Turkey (2016-2017)
Turkish League All-Star Selection & Game MVP
Italy (2017-2018)
EuroCup Participant
EuroCup Semifinalist
France: (2018-2019)
French League All Star Selection
Highest Player Efficiency Rating
China (2019-2020)
Taiwan (2020-2021)
Player Development Coach
Taiwan (2021-2022)
Taiwan League Finalist
Mexico (2022)