Temple’s Jahlil White is one step closer to the finish line after a long year of rehab: ‘I can’t wait to touch the floor’

Jahlil White was defending fellow freshman Nick Jourdain in the post during a preseason practice when a simple slide toward the baseline stalled a promising young career.

“I was praying that it wasn’t any major tear,” White said of his left knee injury. “I thought it was my ACL — I was thinking the worst. I was just praying for the best and hoping I didn’t have to go through those six months of rehab again.”

White’s first thought: “Can I straighten my leg?” Sitting on the hardwood helplessly, struggling to flex or bend at the knee, he knew exactly what happened.

On Oct. 24, 2020, just weeks out from Temple basketball’s season opener, White tore his left meniscus for the second time and required surgery. White suffered his first knee injury playing at a Pittsburgh AAU event in his junior year of high school. He endured months of physical therapy to play his senior season at Wildwood Catholic and was Temple’s first commitment from the class of 2020.

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This time around, Temple immediately decided to shut down White. The coaching staff advises players and their parents on next steps, but there was never a thought White would play in the 2020-21 season, according to assistant coach Chris Clark. White was forced to sit out his freshman season. But he avoided using his redshirt year because NCAA rules granted an extra year of eligibility because of COVID-19.

White’s knee procedure was performed on Nov. 3 at Temple University Hospital by Dr. J. Milo Sewards, an orthopedic surgeon for the athletic department.

Before his injury, it was widely believed White could step into a prominent role with the Owls in the 2020-21 season, perhaps even being thrust into the starting lineup as a 6-foot-7, 205-pound, ball-dominant point guard.

“He could have played anywhere, to be honest,” Clark said. “He could have been a point guard, he could have been a two or three — he doesn’t shoot the ball as well, but he could have played on the wing. He could play the four, too. Wherever the holes are within that rotation, I think Jah can fill them for us.”

White possesses size and athleticism, paired with fluid ballhandling and an ability to generate playmaking opportunities at all three levels. All signs pointed to him making an immediate impact in his first season.

That plan was quickly derailed when the Whitesboro, N.J., native hurt his knee for the second time. It wasn’t an easy pill to swallow.

“The first time it happened, it didn’t really affect me mentally. The second time it was extremely tough mentally,” White said. “It was just a bunch of negative thoughts going through your head all the time, hoping you’ll be the same player again. Or hoping you can come back better. Emotionally, it was a roller coaster. You have your good days and you have your bad days.”

White couldn’t play in live runs with the team last season but did go through game-day workouts and drill his fundamentals. That later turned into one-on-one games, which became competitive as White sensed he was one step closer to getting back on the floor.

“He’s such a competitive kid and he’s really impatient,” Clark said. “Most kids are, they want instant gratification. Sometimes you had to get on him because he was so excited to play that he would just go through the motions of the workouts. [We would tell him] control what you can control.”

In early July, White was able to jump in workouts and scrimmage following morning lifts.

White, who hasn’t played a live game since March 2020, has spent the last year working back toward being even better than the 3-star prospect Temple coach Aaron McKie first recruited. White admitted he took the second round of physical therapy more seriously than the first.

“Physically, honestly, this is the strongest my knee has been in three years,” White said. “Mentally, I’m almost like 110 percent confident in it. Every time I go out there, it’s something I don’t really think about no more.”

White worked out periodically this summer with Mark DiRugeris, who was on the coaching staff at Wildwood Catholic for White’s junior and senior seasons. He’s also a trainer for Hoop Gains out of the Abington Friends School in Jenkintown.

“He’s always had the athleticism and his defense is outstanding,” said DiRugeris, who played professionally for two years in Spain. “He can [shoot] off the pick-and-roll, off the dribble, off a catch-and-shoot. He’s very well-rounded.”

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White’s previous body of work included 16.6 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 2.4 steals per game as a senior. His efforts helped lead the Crusaders to a third straight Cape-Atlantic League Tournament title.

But making the transition to Temple as a big guard wasn’t easy. He struggled with the speed and physicality of the game in his first few weeks at Temple. White remembers turning the ball over incessantly and thinking in practice he wasn’t the playmaker that he once was in high school.

“I feel like my game is much more under control [now],” White said. “I feel like I’m just a smarter player now. I see the game a lot differently after a year of sitting out. There are things I know now that I didn’t know before that just make me a better player.”

White has always been a hard worker who feels pure, unadulterated bliss playing the game he loves, according to DiRugeris.

His former coach remembers one semifinal playoff game when their team started on an 8-0 run. Four of those points belonged to White off two steals and a block.

“Coming off the floor, he was just so excited. He always has a smile on his face and he always gets excited when he’s making good plays or making plays for others,” DuRugeris said. “Whenever he would throw an alley-oop up to his [former] teammate [and now West Virginia freshman] Taj Thweatt, Jahlil would get real excited jumping up and down, smiling and laughing.

“He’s just super happy when he’s on the court.”

In just a few short months, White will make his long-awaited Temple debut and get a chance to channel that joy into meaningful game action.

“It means everything, honestly,” White said. “It’s been I don’t even know how long since I’ve played a game. I can’t wait to touch the floor with those guys and I’m just praying to stay healthy.”