Chicago Bulls: Coby White looked up to Lillard growing up

Late in the night of Jan. 5, the Chicago Bulls and point guard Coby White will try and upset star point guard Damian Lillard and the Blazers.

There is a really interesting game on tap for first-year head coach Billy Donovan and the Chicago Bulls on the night of Jan. 5. The 3-4 Bulls are looking to make it four wins in their last five games if they can pull off the upset on the road of the star guard pairing of point guard Damian Lillard and shooting guard CJ McCollum early this week.

What the Bulls will need to do that is their own talented backcourt pairing of second-year point guard Coby White and shooting guard Zach LaVine to continue their solid play from their last game. That last outing for White, LaVine, and the Bulls resulted in a solid 118-108 win at home at the United Center over a Luka Doncic-less Dallas Mavericks team.

It was mainly the improved efficiency of White and the breakthrough of LaVine in a major way, especially in the first half, that powered the Bulls to their third win of the season in seven tries.

However, White will get another tough matchup on the road on Jan. 5, as he tries to keep a steady hand on both ends of the floor against Lillard and the Blazers. And White spoke on getting to face Lillard this week, and what the Blazers star point guard meant to him growing up.

Prior to tip off White reportedly stated that he was a fan of Lillard’s growing up and talked a bit on this challenge ahead for him and this Bulls team.

"He was a fan growing up and admired his ability to score as a PG. “That’s who I was trying to be in high school,” he said. Now, it’s no fandom. “Playing against really high level guys bring the best out of you.”"

The Bulls and Blazers come into this game with similar records. While the Bulls do have a losing record coming into this game, the Blazers sit at .500 through six games played. The last two games for Lillard and the Blazers resulted in them splitting a home-and-home with the Golden State Warriors on Jan. 1 and 3.

Moreover, White has started in all seven games he’s played in for the Bulls so far this season. He’s averaged 15.7 points per game, 4.7 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 0.3 steals, 0.1 blocks, and 3.3 turnovers. White shot 37.1 percent from the field, 37.3 percent from beyond the arc, and 86.4 percent from the free-throw line.

Meanwhile, Lillard is off to a good start this season as he’s started in all six games he’s played in with the Blazers. He’s averaged 26.3 points per game, 4.3 rebounds, 6.2 assists, 0.7 steals, 0.3 blocks, and 3.5 turnovers. Lillard shot 42.6 percent from the field, 36.5 percent from beyond the arc, and 92.5 percent from the free-throw line.

The Bulls and Blazers are set to tip off on Jan. 5 at the Moda Center at 9:30 p.m. CT. The late tip off on the west coast is something that will hopefully lead to good news for Bulls fans on the morning of Jan. 6.