In his lone season as a Tar Heel, Wright was named the Atlantic Coast Conference Rookie of the Year, and earned All-ACC Second Team honors.

In the 2007 NBA draft, Wright was chosen eighth overall by the Charlotte Bobcats, and in a draft-night trade was dealt to the Golden State Warriors for guard Jason Richardson.

[1][2] Wright led Brentwood Academy to four consecutive state titles, a first in Tennessee high school basketball history.

[4] Wright was named to the NCAA All-East Regional Team after averaging 12.8 points and 7.0 rebounds in four Tournament contests.

[1] Due to an injured hip flexor, Wright was unable to participate in summer league play during his rookie season.

[1] In January 2009, Wright partially dislocated his left shoulder late in the first half of a game against the Los Angeles Lakers.

On February 23, 2011, Wright was traded to the New Jersey Nets along with Dan Gadzuric in exchange for Troy Murphy and a second round pick.

[14] On January 9, 2015, Wright was traded to the Phoenix Suns in exchange for a protected 2015 first-round pick via the Minnesota Timberwolves.

[16][17] After injuring his right knee on November 7, 2015,[18] Wright missed the rest of the 2015–16 season bar a five-game stint in February.

On November 16, 2016, he underwent a successful arthroscopic debridement of his left ankle after non-surgical interventions failed to eliminate his posterior tibialis tendinopathy.

[26] Wright himself has said that growing up, his favorite player was Kevin Garnett and that he is also a fan of Chris Bosh's game and models some of his playing style from the two.

[1][28] Wright has participated in various community outreach projects associated with the Golden State Warriors, including the opening of a new Reading and Learning Center at Megan Furth Academy[29] in San Francisco.

[1] His favorite teams in other sports are the Atlanta Braves (MLB), Nashville Predators (NHL), and the Tennessee Titans (NFL).