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RETIRED JERSEYS
KANSAN.COM
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JO JO WHITE Guard,1966-1969 No.15
► SKYLAR ROLSTAD @SkyRolSports
Jo Jo White retired an NBA legend,but his career started in Allen Fieldhouse with the Kansas Jayhawks.
White achieved consensus second-team All-America honors twice with the Jayhawks, but his achievements in the sport go beyond basketball.
In a time when basketball remained largely segregated, White excelled with Kansas. However, White wasn't accepted on the Kansas team until the players voted to accept him.
a game-winning shot at the end of the Midwest regional final (today's Elite Eight), but was ruled out of bounds by the referee.
His reputation as one of the greatest of the growing number of black players in the country was immortalized in the 2006 film "Glory Road." The movie depicted Texas Western's (now UTEP) 1966 run through the NCAA Basketball Tournament. White hit
"The movie has Jo Jo stepping out by several inches," Kansas coach Ted Owens said in a recent article. "That's just wrong. We doubt that he stepped out of bounds at all."
The 1966 Texas Western team was known for being one of the first basketball programs in the South to accept black players.
White actually played in five seasons for the Jayhawks. He had an extra semester of eligibility in the 1968-69 season and played the first 18 games of the year under Owens. White scored 18.1 points per game and recorded 4.7 rebounds per game in his senior year with the Jayhawks.
"He is probably as complete a player as you would want to run into in a university class," United States coach Hank Iba was quoted as saying in 1968 by ESPN. "His greatest assets are directing plays and an ability to shoot out on the floor. He is a great pro prospect."
"He is probably as complete a player as you would want to run into in a university class." United States coach Hank Iba was
White competed with the United States while attending Kansas in the 1968 Olympics. The United States was an underdog in the competition to Russia and Yugoslavia, but came through for the gold medal.
JO JO WHITE
quoted as saying in 1968 by ESPN. "His greatest assets are directing plays and an ability to shoot out on the floor. He is a great pro prospect."
In 2015, White was finally named to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. White was widely
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considered one of the biggest Hall of Fame snubs for years before his induction.
"I always tried to be the best," White said during his Hall of Fame induction speech, according to a Kansas Athletics release.
"I had two great mentors at Kansas: Ted Owens and Sam Miranda. I love you. I've had so many wonderful teammates and I want to thank them all."
Photo courtesy of University Archives
Sam Miranda was a Kansas assistant coach under Owens. Miranda
died in 2009.
The Boston Celtics, the team White spent nine seasons of his 12-year NBA career playing for, retired White's No.10 in 1982.
- Edited by Mara Kubicki
Photo courtesy of University Archives
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DAVE ROBISCH
"As I look back, I think we had a great season," Robisch said of the 1970-71 season. "Obviously, there is disappointment. I have told a lot of people what sticks in the brain all the time ... The one shot I remember the most was one I made to put us ahead in the second half against UCLA, but they called me for traveling. I just wonder what would have happened if I hadn't been called for traveling."
DAVE ROBISCH
Dave Robisch was a superstar since his high school
Forward/Center, 1969-1971 No.40
▶ DEASIA PAIGE
@deasia_paige
Robisch was only a sophomore when he made the varsity basketball team at Woodward High School in Ohio. But it was not until his family moved to Springfield, Illinois, that he garnered attention for his game.
career.
Growing up in Cincinnati, his passion for basketball and his overall determination to win instantly made him fit to be a Jayhawk.
Playing for the Springfield High School Senators, Robisch led his team to the state sectional. Robisch continued that success in his next season as a senior when he led his team to third place in the state tournament.
It was those same skills that earned Robisch the attention of then-assistant Kansas basketball coach Sam Miranda. It only took Robisch one visit to Kansas to determine that that was the place for him. Although Robisch's
Robisch's skills and 6-foot-10 frame attracted national recognition.
potential was noticed by many, his exceptional career at Kansas could not have been predicted.
"Dave was about the finest competitive shooter I've been around," former Kansas coach Ted Owens told the Lawrence Journal-World in 2005. "He did something I don't think I've seen anybody else master. He could bank in a shot straight out. Down the stretch, if you needed a basket, Dave would find a way to get the ball in there."
Robisch was a two-time All-American, three-time All-Big Eight selection and a two-time Big Eight Player of the Year. He was also a member of the 1971 Final Four team.
"As I look back, I think we had a great season," Robisch said of the 1970-71 season. "Obviously, there is disappointment. I have told a lot of people what sticks in the brain all the time ... The one shot I remember the most was one I made to put us ahead in the second half against UCLA, but they called me for traveling. I just wonder what would have happened if I hadn't been called for traveling."
Averaging 26.5 points per game during the 1969- 70 season, Robisch has the fourth-highest scoring average in school history, ranking behind legends Wilt Chamberlain and
Clyde Lovellette. When he was inducted into the Kansas Sports Hall of Fame in 2008, he was the second leading scorer (behind Clyde Lovellette) and he was among the list of top 10 scorers in Kansas history.
His jersey was retired in 2005.
"It's the culmination of the hard work I put in," Robisch said when his jersey was retired. "The great respect I have for the university and the basketball program ... what a great ride, what a great moment with family, teammates and coaches here."
After his time at Kansas, Robisch was drafted by the Denver Rockets of the American Basketball Association in 1971. He went on to play for the Indiana Pacers, Baltimore Claws, and the San Diego Conquistadors.
Robisch played seven seasons in the NBA, playing for teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers, Los Angeles Lakers, San Antonio Spurs and the Kansas City Kings. Although his professional career is not as stellar than his college career, Robisch scored 10,581 points and posted 6,173 rebounds in his 13 seasons as a professional basketball player.
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