In 2004, Coby White was a pint-sized 3 year old whose Goldsboro, N.C., based family was proud that he could sink 2-footers in his Little Tike’s adjustable basketball goal.
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In the same year, 100 hundred miles northwest in Mebane, JamesOn Curry was scorching the nets at Eastern Alamance to the tune of 43 points per game in route to becoming the leading scorer in North Carolina high school basketball history with 3,307 career points.
Curry’s reign ended Saturday afternoon.
In a 74-68 loss to Northside (Roanoke, Va.) at the Rock the Ribbon Roundball Shootout in Lexington, Va., White scored 41 points to surpass Curry as the state’s top scorer, and land him on the American Family Insurance ALL-USA Watch List.
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White has officially scored 3,325 points with two regular season games still remaining.
White sits atop a distinguished list of players which include David Thompson, James Worthy, Dominique Wilkins, and, yes, even Michael Jordan.
“Wow, I mean what can I say,” White said. “It’s just an honor. I learned that I was close to reaching this before the season started and I wrote it down as one of my goals. It just feels great. I definitely want to thank my teammates, coach (Rob) Salter and all of my other coaches because without them this wouldn’t even be possible. It hasn’t really hit me. It’s crazy.”
This season, White has pumped in 32 points, eight assists and seven rebounds a game for the Knights. He broke the John Wall Holiday Invitational’s 27-year-old scoring record in December, scoring 119 points in three games, and was recently named to the McDonald’s All American Game, which tips on March 28.
White, a North Carolina signee, was also named as 1 of 9 finalists for USA Today’s ALL-USA Player of the Year award.
Curry said he’s seen highlights of White and was happy about being dethroned by “such a talented player.”
Curry was also originally signed to North Carolina, but had his scholarship rescinded after legal troubles. He went on to star at Oklahoma State before stints overseas, with the Chicago Bulls and the Los Angeles Clippers.
“That’s awesome that he set a bar for someone to chase,” Curry said. “He’s got game! I’m happy for him because he seems like an awesome kid. Now he’s setting the standard for the next kid. I wish him nothing but the best. I’m proud of him.”
White lost his father Donald to cancer on August 15. Shortly thereafter he dedicated the rest of his basketball career to him and set three goals: Become a McDonald’s All American, become the state’s all-time leading scorer and win a state title.
“I know my dad is smiling down on me,” White said. “I worked really hard to get here, but I’ve got so much further to go. I didn’t come up as the guy who was supposed to be the next big thing or anything like that. I had to make it happen through hard work. That makes this so much better. Now I’ve got one more goal and I’m putting everything I have into winning the state title.”
Follow Jason Jordan on Twitter: @JayJayUSATODAY