It’s been a long, winding road home for Joseph Worthington-White.
After attending three schools in three years, the Waukegan senior guard will finish his high school career in his home district with a team poised to take another step forward this season.
“I’m excited to be back because this is where it all started, and I feel a lot of love,” Worthington-White said. “For my last year, it was a no-brainer to honor my home city, and it should be an exciting year.”
Part of that excitement has to do with the talented players already on the Bulldogs (12-17), who will open the season against Crystal Lake South in Johnsburg on Monday. They return all five starters, including sophomore wing Simereon Carter
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, and other key players. Adding Worthington-White could have been challenging for team chemistry, but he said that hasn’t been a problem.“We all have respect for each other and what everyone can do,” Worthington-White said. “I feel like I put a lot of pressure on these guards this summer, but that was a good thing. We’re all pretty scrappy and can adjust to what the team needs.”
Worthington-White is also just glad to be home after two years outside the area. He started at Zion-Benton and then went to Elevation Prep in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and St. Rita on the South Side of Chicago.
“Those were all good experiences, but last year, I wasn’t fitting in, so my first thought was about coming home,” he said.
Worthington-White profiles as a combo guard who can deftly handle any responsibility on the perimeter. He’s more than capable of scoring but can assume lead guard duties too. As a senior with extensive experience, Worthington-White also figures to be a stabilizing force for his younger teammates.
“It’s like he was born dribbling a basketball,” Waukegan coach Ron Ashlaw said. “He’s really skilled with the ball and is a good decision-maker. His basketball IQ is very high, and he’s a lot like his brother with the intangibles he has. He has a great basketball pedigree.”
Ashlaw wasn’t referring only to Worthington-White’s brother Andre White Jr., a 2019 Waukegan graduate. Worthington-White hasn’t worn a Waukegan uniform in a game yet, but his Lake County basketball bona fides run deep. His father, Andre White, was a star guard at Zion-Benton and later played at Robert Morris and UAB. Some of Worthington-White’s earliest memories involve him taking the court during timeouts at his father’s college games.
“His dad did a great job schooling him and his brother,” Ashlaw said. “It’s cool to see him come full circle.”
Andre White is an athletic trainer who owns DaWhiteWay, a basketball gym and training facility in Waukegan. He has taken Worthington-White to California during the past several summers to get additional guidance from trainer Kelvin Potts.
“He’s always been a leader, and that comes natural to him,” White said. “He can do whatever the team needs and can dominate a game without scoring. That’s one of the things I like most about his game. And he’s got long arms and is a dog on defense.”
Worthington-White is in complete agreement with his father about the importance of defense, but he also knows points have to be manufactured to win in the up-tempo style of good Waukegan teams.
“The fire all starts with ‘D,’ and I definitely like to get after it,” Worthington-White said. “My goal is to score 20 every night, but there’s a respect part with me coming in. But with this being my last chapter, I’d like to go out with a bang.”
Steve Reaven is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun.