Long Island Basketball Star Jo-Jo Wright Killed In Crash

UNIONDALE, NY — A star high school basketball player was killed in a crash Wednesday afternoon in Uniondale. Jo-Jo Wright, 15, was a sophomore at Uniondale High School.

Police said Wright was with three other teenagers in a 2012 Honda CR-V that was involved in a crash with an 87-year-old man driving a 2006 Toyota. The crash happened at 2 p.m. at the intersection of Maple Avenue and Front Street, police said. The Honda hit a pole and Wright was taken to Nassau University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.

The three other teenagers, ages 17, 17 and 18, were hospitalized with injuries that were not considered life-threatening, police said. The condition of the man was not available.

Wright, a point guard, racked up numerous accolades as a freshman for the Knights. He was one of only two freshmen in New York to be named all-state in 2020.

"Would not be surprised to see him as player of the year in New York State by the time he graduates," Frank Mantesta, of Prep Hoops, wrote of Wright earlier this month.