As both a person and a player, NBA Hall of Famer Jo Jo White was an “Everyman” of sorts, a guy in whom we all could spot a little of ourselves – good family man, great athlete, solid citizen.
In the midst of the NBA’s battle for players with the old ABA, Red Auerbach had drafted and signed the Kansas Jayhawk in early April of 1969 with the expectation that he’d serve a season’s internship with the defending champions behind savvy veterans like Larry Siegfried, Emmette Bryant and John Havlicek.
But when Bill Russell announced his retirement four months later, the rookie and second-year man Don Chaney were put on the fast track to becoming new Coach Tom Heinsohn’s backcourt of the ‘70’s – the refurbished Sam and KC Jones, so to say, a savvy scorer paired with a lock-down defender.