(USA TODAY Sports) — The hero of the “Greatest game ever played,” JoJo White is immortal in Celtics lore. The Boston Herald’s Steve Bulpett reported Tuesday that White lost his battle with cancer, passing away at the age of 71.
White has long battled brain cancer, including surgery in 2010 to remove a tumor. White continued to serve as a community ambassador for the Celtics after recovery and continued to earn admiration from everyone in the organization, including coach Doc Rivers.
“When you saw him the first couple of times you were extremely worried,” Rivers said in 2013. “But we jokingly said that JoJo could make sick cool. He really is a cool dude and a great human being.”
White went on to form the Jo Jo White Foundation in 2012 to provide support for brain cancer research.
White was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015. He helped lead the Boston Celtics to two NBA titles in 1974 and 1976 alongside fellow Hall of Famers John Havlicek and Dave Cowens. He was one of the greatest shooters of his generation and helped define the pull-up jump shot in the pre-three-point era.
The seven-time All-Star had his number 10 retired in 1982 and went on to serve as a community ambassador for the Celtics for much of his life after retirement.
Perhaps his greatest accomplishment of his career came in one game of his 1976 Finals MVP campaign. The Celtics beat the Suns 126-126 in triple OT in what was known as the greatest game ever played. White dropped 33 points to go with 9 assists on that historic night.
