A Brief Biography on the Basketball Career of NBA Legend Jo Jo White

Joseph Henry White, more commonly known as Jo Jo White, was born was born on November 16, 1949. White grew up in St. Louis, Missouri.

Jo Jo White rose quickly to the top of the college basketball pool of talent during his career at the University of Kansas. His most noted college game and performance was against the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP), who was at the time called Texas Western University. White's team lost to a Texas Western team that ended up going on to win the NCAA National Championship. During his career at the University of Kansas, White averaged 15.3 points per game to go along with 4.9 assists. White was a three time All-American selection.

Jo Jo White had an extremely solid and productive NBA career. He was selected with the number nine pick in the 1969 NBA Draft by the Boston Celtics. The Celtics were in a big transitional period at the time. They had just finished an incredible run in which they won 11 NBA titles. This situation was ideal for White, as he flourished almost immediately in the league. His first season, in 1970, did not go very well with relation to the team. The Celtics finished the season with their worst record in about 20 years. White averaged 14.7 points per contest that year.

The 1971 season brought better luck for the Celtics. Though a title was not won, the improvement in the team was great. White was elected to the NBA All Star game in 1971 and would continue to appear in the game for the next six seasons after. White was also well known for starting a run during the 1971 season in which he played every regular season game for five straight seasons.

The Celtics continued to get better over the next few years and White led them to the NBA championship in 1974 and 1976. He was especially well known for getting the NBA Finals Most Valuable Player award for the 1976 championship series. Winning championships in Boston makes you untouchable. White's number was retired by the Celtics on April 9, 1982. White played in the NBA for 12 seasons, 10 of them for the Boston Celtics. White was the leading scorer with 33 points in what is regarded as the best game ever played in NBA history. The game during the 1976 NBA Finals featured a triple overtime match between the Celtics and the Phoenix Suns. The Celtics finally emerged with a victory after the third overtime with a score of 128-126. Perhaps the most unbelievable feat by White in this game was that he played for 60 minutes.

White is presently working as the Director of Special Projects and Community Relations with the Boston Celtics. He is a big Celtics fan and I even had the pleasure of meeting him at a recent game I attended.

Jo Jo White will without a doubt be a Basketball Hall of Fame selection in the future. His mark on not only the Boston Celtics but the entire NBA was immeasurable. He was known for being an all around player who could shoot, play solid defense, and do anything that it took for his team to win.