The NBA’s most popular players are getting older, and soon the names on everyone’s lips will be the players who are currently young and unknown in the sport. One such player is Okaro White, an American professional basketball player in the National Basketball Association (NBA), who first caught the eye when he played college basketball for Florida State.
Who is Okaro White?
Okaro White was born on August 13, 1992 in Brooklyn, New York. The basketball player is the youngest of three children. Athletic genes run in his family; his mother, Charmaine White, was a former member of the Jamaican national team.
The athlete devoted his life to different sports, basketball eventually becoming the one he made a career out of. As a teenager, Okaro played football and ran track. At his high school, Clearwater High School, the kid was named Pinellas County Basketball Player of the Year. He then started playing college basketball at Florida State after receiving scholarship offers from Florida, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Clemson and Miami.
When it comes to basketball, he certainly looks the part. Standing 6ft 8in tall and weighing 93kg, Okaro is definitely a man with the shape and physicality to pursue a sport like basketball which requires physical performance.
His short career has already taken him to Italy, Greece and the United States, where he has played for the Miami Heat, Cleveland Cavaliers and is currently part of the San Antonio Spurs roster.
Six facts about the basketball player
1. He gained five and a half inches in one summer
We all have that summer when our bodies changed and we had to get to know the new person in the mirror. For many of us, these changes didn’t happen fast enough to become a completely different person overnight. However, this is not the case with Okaro White. In eighth grade, he had a growth spurt that allowed him to grow five and a half inches in one summer.
2. He comes from a sporty family
If you’re going to be a player in one of the most physically demanding sports in the world, it helps to come from a family with a sporting history. Okaro is one of the lucky few. As mentioned earlier, the athlete’s mother used to race for the Jamaican national team. If you know the Jamaican track and field team or have ever watched an Olympic event, you would understand how competitive the Jamaican national team is and that her mother who runs for the national team officially makes her a tough guy.
3. A big fan of spaghetti
If Okaro White lives up to his potential and becomes one of the NBA’s greatest athletes, it might be useful information to have for trivia nights that his favorite food is spaghetti. Specifically, ‘sweet spaghetti’ which is spaghetti but with lots of sugar. I guess if you’re an athlete who burns a lot of calories, guilty pleasures like this are of little consequence.
4. Once played as a quarterback
Having mentioned earlier that the baller comes from an athletic family background, it’s no wonder he tried his hand at a few other sports before his body and passion won out in basketball. Okaro played football at the high school level, as a quarterback and in the free safety positions. The quarterback position would definitely have helped his vision, passing and ability to read a game. All the skills needed to succeed in high-speed basketball.
5. He would have been a customs officer
Okaro White admitted in 2007 that while he didn’t like playing basketball, he would love to be a customs officer working along the Canadian border. When asked about such a specific and unique choice, he attributes the choice to his television interests. Okaro, a big fan of CSI, said it inspired him to choose criminology and social sciences as his major in college.
6. he is very energetic
Probably from the years of eating sweet Spaghetti or having a childhood of intense sports practice, Okaro White is a very energetic player. This helps him excel in high tempo games. His athleticism and height allow him to move up and down like a guard. Certainly, if basketball hadn’t worked out, he would have been more than a competent customs officer.