From 13.2 points per game, concluding in a fifth-place Rookie of the Year finish, to 9.7 points per game in his fourth professional season, Coby White's NBA career progression has been anything but linear.
Following the 2022-23 campaign that saw White average fewer points per game than Patrick Williams and attempt merely 8.0 field goals per contest, he signed a modest three-year, $36 million contract extension with the franchise. Although relatively inexpensive for a former seventh-overall pick, the pact was reasonable considering White's production.
Coby White has improved mightily after signing his bargain contract
A spark was seemingly lit under White after signing for a discounted rate. He began the 2023-24 season as a starter, in a full-time capacity for the first time since his sophomore season, and he delivered. White averaged career-highs 19.1 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 5.1 assists per game, shooting 44.7 percent from the field and 37.6 percent from three. He appeared in 79 games and totaled the third-most minutes in the association.
White almost took home the Most Improved Player Award for his efforts, coming in second place behind the Philadelphia 76ers' Tyrese Maxey by merely 14 points. His follow-up campaign began a bit rocky, before taking his game to new heights in the latter portion of the season.
White's second breakout in as many seasons occurred following Chicago's decision to jettison Zach LaVine. Before the Bulls traded LaVine to the Sacramento Kings, White averaged 18.4 points, 4.6 assists, and 3.4 rebounds per game in 43 appearances. His counting stats were reminiscent of his most improved campaign a season prior.
Post-LaVine, White averaged 23.1 points, 4.2 assists, and 4.1 rebounds per game in 32 contests. He even upped his field goal and three-point percentages from 43.5 to 46.9 and 36.6 to 37.2 percent, respectively. White finished his sixth professional season with averages of 20.4 points, 3.7 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 0.9 steals per game. He shot a career-high 45.3 percent from the floor and attempted a career-best 4.1 free throws per game.
With more opportunity, White is beginning to round the edges of his game. After slowly relying on others for scoring opportunities as his career progressed (34.8 percent of his twos and 96.1 percent of his threes were assisted on in 2022-23), White has reverted to what made him one of the most-heralded prospects in the 2019 NBA Draft—three-level shotmaking.
33.6 percent of White's twos and a career-low 75.9 percent of his three-pointers came via assists this past season. Furthermore, White increased his shot arsenal, attempting nearly as many twos as threes and increasing his free-throw rate to 27.4 percent. White's improvement isn't solely apparent on a year-to-year basis. As stated above, his February-onward development is evident.
Before Chicago reshaped its roster at the trade deadline, White averaged 11.6 drives per game. Following the trade, he drove 3.3 more times per contest and attempted 5.6 driving field goals per game. White averaged 8.0 points per game on drives, shooting 53.1 percent in the wake of LaVine's departure.
White's next step in his progression is taking a Jalen Brunson-like leap
More opportunity has led to an expanded workload, furthering White's offensive versatility and even enhancing his efficiency. Although the sample size is relatively small thus far, White's ascent is reminiscent of New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson's. While the Clutch Player of the Year is now, by most accounts, considered a top-10- 15 player in the NBA, not long ago, he was playing second-fiddle to Luka Doncic on the Dallas Mavericks.
In his final season in Dallas, before also signing a heavily discounted contract, Brunson averaged 16.3 points and 4.8 assists. He shot 50.2 percent from the field and 37.3 percent from beyond the arc. Now, considered one of the better foul drawers in the association, Brunson averaged only 2.7 free throw attempts per game in his best season in Dallas.
However, as the story goes, with ample opportunity, the former Villanova Wildcat's game took off. In his first season in New York as the primary option, Brunson averaged 24.0 points per game. He attempted 17.6 field goals, 4.7 threes, and 5.8 free throws per contest. Like White, the percentage of his assisted field goals drastically decreased. Brunson's assisted twos decreased by nearly 10 percent, and his assisted threes dropped 25 percent. Yet his field goal percentage remained similar, and his three-point percentage increased.
Additionally, Brunson's drives surged from 13.6 in his final season with the Mavericks to 19.6 per game in his first year in Manhattan. As expected, his usage rate also saw a sizable bump from 21.9 to 27.2 percent, and it's only inflated since then. Although not quite as drastic, White's usage rate has gone from 22.7 in 2023-24 to 24.4 percent in 2024-25 and notably 24.9 percent post-LaVine.
The parallels aren't identical. Nonetheless, they're still comparable. Brunson's All-Star emergence came at 26 years old, the same age White will turn one day after the 2026 All-Star game. It's never too late to make the All-Star leap, something that Coby is assuredly capable of after back-to-back breakout campaigns.