Delon Wright showcasing offseason hard work for Utah basketball


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SALT LAKE CITY — With expectations surrounding the University of Utah basketball team increasing, senior point guard Delon Wright believes the work the team is doing in the offseason will help the Utes compete for a Pac-12 championship.

“I think people are expecting us to do big things and compete with Arizona for the Pac-12 title,” Wright said. “I think expectations are going to be there and we’ve got to deliver.”

Several national pundits have listed Utah as an up-and-coming program expected to compete in the Pac-12 and on the national level this upcoming season. Several of the team’s athletes are putting in the hard work in the offseason to improve their skills.

Wright recently returned to Utah after a weekend in Las Vegas where he competed in the LeBron James Skills Academy, a skills camp for 30 of the best players in college basketball. Wright was reportedly one of the top performers at the camp, showcasing his talent before several NBA scouts and executives.

“It was a good experience,” Wright said. “I got to play with the top players returning to college. Just seeing how hard they play and learning from the instructors at the camp was a good thing.”

Wright was one of four players from the Pac-12 invited to the camp, joining Arizona’s Rondae Hollis-Jefferson and Stanley Johnson, and Oregon’s Joseph Young. Wright had an opportunity to play against a defending LeBron James, who was then in the midst of free agency rumors before "going home" to sign with Cleveland.

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“I didn’t think too much of it,” Wright said about playing against James. “But after everybody was asking about it, so I guess it was a big thing.”

Wright, who was named as one of the top point guards in the nation by ESPN, was talked about as a potential first-round draft pick had he declared for the 2014 draft, but his inconsistency with his jump shot likely would have forced a team to select him in the second round. Wright, instead, decided to return to Utah to improve his skills and to help the Runnin’ Utes compete.

“I feel like me coming back I’ll have a chance to be a for sure first round, so I feel more comfortable about that,” Wright said. “It’s motivating to just improve my game.”

In the offseason Wright said he’s been improving his shooting, putting in some time with the team coaches, in addition to working with a personal trainer.

“I’ve just been shooting and getting in the gym as much as possible and working on the different type of shooting drills, my form and my release — all the little things,” he said.

Wright added that his brother, NBA player Dorell Wright, has been giving a few tips as well. “He just tells me to be aggressive and play my game.”

In August, Utah head coach Larry Krystkowiak, and players Jordan Loveridge, Brandon Taylor and Jeremy Olsen will play in a four-game Pac-12 all-star tour through China, playing a Chinese university team, and teams from the Chinese Basketball Association, including regular season champion Guangdong Southern Tigers.

“That’s a big thing,” Wright said. “I’m playing against players that are making me better and they’re going to be playing pros over there, which will make them better and (show) them what they can improve. It will be good for them to get out and play against players that are probably better than them and so they can compete also.”

Utes sophomore Kenneth Ogbe has spent the summer overseas participating in the U20 European Championship for the German National Team. In five games, Ogbe averaged 6.4 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists. Ogbe will return to the team after the competition ends on July 20.

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