John was the runner-up for CIF Player of the Year at Glendale HS in 1962 when he averaged 18 points per game, and an even better college player at USC where he was a two-time All-Conference selection, and one of the school’s first All-Americans, while he overall averaged 18 points and 9 rebounds a game. He averaged 25 points per game in 1966. His strong college background led to a 11-year NBA career, including making the 1973 NBA All-Star game.

First selected by the Los Angeles Lakers, the 6-10 Block played one season for the Lakers before moving for four seasons to the San Diego Rockets in the NBA expansion draft, and averaged 20 points and 11 rebounds a game in his first season there. Overall, he averaged 12 points and 7 rebounds over his career that included 7 teams. One of his most famous games was scoring 17 points with 10 rebound when Milwaukee ended the Lakers record 33 game winning streak on January 9, 1972. After retiring he was a college coach for over 20 years including stints at UC San Diego and finishing his career at Point Loma Nazarene. Block published a book titled “Building Block” about his career and life in 2022.