Final Four Duke University player Jahlil Okafor gives shout out to Whitney Young on his way to the NBA...
Rahm Emanuel may have devoted his four years as Chicago's mayor to teacher bashing, union busting, and an unprecedented all-out attack privatization on the city's public schools, but at least some Chicago celebrities respect their roots and continue to say "Thank You!" for the value of a public education. Jahlil Okafor, one of the nation's top collegiate basketball players, made sure to give a shout out to his alma mater, Chicago's Whitney Young Magnet High School, as his Duke University team prepares for the final four of the NCAA championships. Okafur graduated with the Class of 2014 from Whitney Young, ranked as one of the top high school players in history. He was also a top student, according to his teachers and friends.
Most Whitney Young alumni respect the high school and make sure they add their appreciations when they can. Among those is Jahlil Okafor, who graduated in 2014 to become one of the nation's top college basketball players (now heading into the final four of the NCAA championships with Duke). Unlike others in Chicago, including former White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel and First Lady Michelle Obama, Okafor doesn't devote his time to trash talking against the city's public schools, or the school from which he graduates.DNA INFO CHICAGO STORY:
Jahlil Okafor Gives Shoutout to Whitney Young on School's TV Station, By Justin Breen | April 3, 2015 5:18am @dnainfo_breen
CHICAGO � Jahlil Okafor hasn't forgotten his high school roots heading into Saturday's Final Four with Duke.
Okafor's former Whitney Young basketball teammate, McKinley Nelson, videotaped the Blue Devils star giving a shoutout to his alma mater's TV station � DUBTV � following Duke's Elite Eight victory over Gonzaga in Houston on Sunday.
"This is Jahlil Okafor. I'm here with my dad [Chukwudi]. Shoutout to all the Dolphins. You're watching DUBTV," Okafor said in the video, which appeared on the school's weekly Internet television program. Okafor's bit comes near the 9:30 mark.
"Jah loves Whitney Young so it wasn't much of a hassle to get him to do it," Nelson said. "Jah's my best friend. After the game, he came out to the see his family and friends and just asked him to do the shoutout really quickly."
Okafor is the second ex-Dolphins player to reach a Final Four, joining Ohio State's Sam Thompson, who lost to Kansas in a 2012 national semifinal.
Okafor made the Associated Press All-America first team this week and is a frontrunner for national player of the year honors. He's also the expected No. 1 selection in the upcoming NBA draft.
"To see Jah in the Final Four is ideal," Nelson said. "It's not only big for Whitney Young but the city of Chicago as a whole, especially since he's performing at the level he is."
Okafor also appeared on DUBTV in 2013 when mocking his decision to attend Duke.
"Jahlil is a good guy who was a good sport [in 2013] on DUB TV," said Jay Rehak, who teaches the Honors TV Production class at Whitney Young. "It is very good to have alumni like Jahlil remember the little people."
Duke plays Michigan State, while Kentucky faces Wisconsin in Saturday's national semifinals in Indianapolis. The winners will play in Monday's national championship game.
