Lorenzen Wright, born Lorenzen Vern-Gagne Wright, was an American basketball player who played 13 seasons in the NBA for Los Angeles Clippers, Atlanta Hawks, Memphis Grizzlies, Sacramento Kings, and Cleveland Cavaliers.
Lorenzen Wright was born on November 4, 1975, in Oxford, Mississippi. Lorenzen Wright was born to parents: Deborah Marion and Herb Wright. He had two sisters: Savia Archie and Adriane Harris, and a brother, Lou Wright.
Aged 34, he went missing on July 18, 2010. Later his body was found having been shot to death.
They shared seven children from his marriage with Sherra Wright Robinson: Lorenzen Wright Jr., Shamar Wright, Loren Wright, Sodia Wright, Lamar Wright, Sierra Wright, and Lawson Wright.
Among seven kids, Wright Jr., born on April 11, 1995, followed his father's footsteps and is a professional basketball player. He finished his college career playing for Robert Morris University.
Furthermore, his twin sons Shamar and Lamar have committed to play for the SIUE Cougars men's basketball team.
On July 18, 2010, Lorenzen Wright went on missing. As reported by his ex-wife, Sherra Wright Robinson, he left home with drugs with some amount and has disappeared since then. Later four days, the family filed a missing report.
On July 28, Wright's body was found in a wooded area on Callis Cutoff Road, having been shot to death. Wright's body is buried in Calvary Cemetery in Memphis, Tennessee.
On November 9, 2017, the police found a gun in a Walnut, Mississippi, lake that is believed to have been used to murder Wright. The following month, on December 15, Wright's ex-wife, Sherra Wright-Robinson, was arrested in California in connection and charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of Lorenzen Wright.
Almost after a seven-year-long investigation on Wright's death, police found the guilty, and it has been one of the Memphis Police Department's most high-profile unsolved cases.
On July 25, 2019, Sherra Wright-Robinson pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
Throughout his NBA career, Wright had earned his wealth widely, playing 13 seasons long. He made more than $55 million in his NBA career. His annual salary at the end of his career was $1,262,275 annually.
The highest wage he received in a year was $7.7 million in 2005.
Salary History:
Season | Team | Earnings |
1996-1997 | Los Angeles Clippers | $1,480,000 |
1997-1998 | Los Angeles Clippers | $1,701,720 |
1998-1999 | Los Angeles Clippers | $1,923,000 |
1999-2000 | Atlanta Hawks | $4,400,000 |
2000-2001 | Atlanta Hawks | $4,950,000 |
2001-2002 | Memphis Grizzlies | $5,500,000 |
2002-2003 | Memphis Grizzlies | $6,050,000 |
2003-2004 | Memphis Grizzlies | $6,600,000 |
2004-2005 | Memphis Grizzlies | $7,150,000 |
2005-2006 | Memphis Grizzlies | $7,700,000 |
2006-2007 | Atlanta Hawks | $3,250,000 |
2007-2008 | Sacramento Kings | $3,250,000 |
2008-2009 | Cleveland Cavaliers | $1,262,275 |
Total Earnings | $55,216,995 |
Although basketball player had summoned over $55 million during his NBA career, he had burned through most of the money and was almost broke at his death.
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In 2005 and 2006, Wright and his wife purchased the vacant land for $750,000. Around the time, the duo sold their former home in Southwind. Later, the couple socred the custom-built, 12,475-square-foot house for $1.3 million on the Shelby County Courthouse steps near Raleigh-LaGrange and Reid Hooker roads.
Before, they had a home at 220 Mountain Brook Cove. The two-story mansion consists of 17-room completed in 2008 with a $2.7 million construction loan through BankTennessee and dated May 16, 2006. However, the Wrights defaulted on that loan and sold that home back to the bank. As reported, around 2008, Lorenzen needed cash and sold two of his luxury cars to a man named Bobby Cole.
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In the 1996 NBA Draft, Lorenzen Wright was picked seventh overall by the Los Angeles Clippers out of the University of Memphis. After three seasons with the Clippers, he switched to the Atlanta Hawks in 1999. In 2001, he was traded to the Memphis Grizzlies but returned to the Hawks in 2006.
Highlights
On February 16, 2008, he was traded to the Sacramento and various other Atlanta players for Mike Bibby.
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