Ceyair Wright on acting in Space Jam 2, relationship with Chris Hawkins

On Wednesday, the NCAA Board of Governors supported rule changes which would allow student-athletes to be compensated for their likeness beginning in the 2021-22 school year. For one, there are still a myriad of things that need to be ironed out. Plus, no money can pass hands for at least 15 months. Regardless, it’s interesting to think about what the landscape of collegiate athletics will be then.

That school year will be the first for Ceyair Wright, a four-star athlete out of Loyola High in Los Angeles.

Most have never heard his name or seen his face. After next summer, that’s sure to change. By the time he embarks on his freshman season at whatever school he eventually chooses, Wright’s face will be, if nothing else, in the public consciousness.

More than most teenagers, Wright has learned to manage his interests and hobbies. He, of course, plays football. And since he was five, Wright has dabbled in the world of acting. No major roles, but he’s been in a number of commercials and Hollywood productions, most notably appearing in an episode of the CBS' sitcom “Two Broke Girls.”

Next July, his IMDB page will garner a major boost. Wright landed -- and already filmed -- the role of LeBron James’ son in Space Jam 2. (Like the original does with Michael Jordan, Space Jam 2 doesn’t use James’ actual family so he’s not specifically playing Bronny James.)

“It was a great time,” Wright said, before adding that he can’t divulge much about the film. “I was blessed to be there.”

Wright initially auditioned for the role in February and, after three rounds of callbacks and additional readings, was informed he locked down the part in May. Speaking about the summer filming, about being on a movie set with NBA stars like James, Anthony Davis, and Klay Thompson, Wright tried to downplay it.

“It’s not weird at all,” he said. “Everyone on the film was really close so it’s not like it’s them and then me on the side. We’re all together.

“I think a big thing for sustaining a passion for something is having a lot of other things you can do,” he added. “My time and attention have been divided … If I get tired of acting, I can just get into football again, and then once I want to get back into acting, I can.”

Searching for similarities between his football and acting career, Wright didn’t find much. But he felt that on studio sets, he brought a level of athleticism and skills that became beneficial. On top of that, his ability to memorize pages and pages of scripts has allowed him to quickly consume and grasp massive playbooks.

Wright said he hopes to make acting his full-time gig when his football career concludes. But, going by his current outlook on the gridiron, that may be a while.

Wright, a 6-foot, 173-pound cornerback, racked up more than 50 tackles, seven pass deflections and a trio of interceptions his junior year. More than anything, Wright’s speed sticks out. As a sprinter last year, the LA native ran a sub-11-second 100-meter-dash and was a part of Loyola’s state champion 4x100 squad.

Playing corner, he points to other skillsets outside of sheer quickness.

“I think that I’m really technically sound, versatile,” Wright said. “I think I can do a lot of different things on the football field and I think my football IQ carries a lot of weight.”

Driving around the country with his seven-on-seven team, Ground Zero, Wright has been on nearly two dozen unofficial visits over the last few years. His goal was to unofficially visit nearly every big-time school he had any semblance of interest in and then narrow down a top five to take his official visits to.

Now, with official visits shut down because of the pandemic, Wright’s recruitment is in a relative halt. He said he’s not willing to put out a top-whatever list until he can take all his visits, adding that putting out a commitment date would be premature while the pandemic causes recruiting uncertainty.

At the moment, the four-star has 34 offers, including one from Arizona State. He took an unofficial visit to Tempe in November, in Sun Devil Stadium during ASU’s 31-26 loss to USC.

“It was great,” Wright said of his visit to Tempe. “It was really fun being up there because I had a lot of friends that were on that same unofficial.”

Ironically, the Trojans were the bond between Wright and his main recruiter in Tempe, defensive backs coach Chris Hawkins, whose father, Armond Hawkins Sr., heads up the Ground Zero 7x7 club.

Hawkins, a former USC graduate assistant who was hired by ASU in December as a 24-year old, spoke many times with Wright while trying to make him a Trojan. Because of their prior relationship, the four star felt there was no drop off in his recruitment after former ASU defensive backs coach Tony White left for Syracuse.

If anything, Wright admitted, Hawkins youth is an advantage for the Sun Devils.

“He’s a lot closer to my age than a lot of other people, so it’s really easy for me to connect to him and relate to him,” Wright said of Hawkins. “I think that’s one of the reasons we hit it off so well … It’s refreshing to have someone who is a coach and understands my perspective on things.”

The Sun Devils may feel like an underdog in Wright’s recruitment considering he’s intent on at least stopping by the campuses and speaking to the coaches of some of college football’s most historic programs.

But, the Sun Devils have the Pro Model going for them. For recruits like Wright who see the NFL in their future, ASU may have some pull.

“I think it’s a great thing to have people who have been in the NFL on staff,” Wright said. “They have a lot of people who have been there and can pass down that information on what it takes to get to the next level and what it takes to thrive at the next level.

“(My wish list in recruiting) is a school that is able to develop me as a player and a person. Then a school that will be able to put me in a good position to be successful after football is over.”

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