The Chicago Bulls and Miami Heat will meet on Wednesday, April 16, for the second season in a row in the Eastern Conference Play-In Tournament. Just over a year ago, Miami defeated Chicago, 112-91 to advance as the eighth seed to the NBA Playoffs.
Tyler Herro helped guide the Heat to victory, recording a near-triple-double against the Bulls. Herro dropped 24 points, 10 rebounds, and nine assists. Then-rookie Jaime Jaquez Jr. contributed 21 points, six rebounds, and six assists in the winning effort.
What ultimately led to Miami's 21-point victory was staunch defense. Despite missing former Miami forward Jimmy Butler, the Heat stymied the Bulls, forcing them to shoot 38.0 percent from the field and 30.2 percent from long-range. Former Bull, DeMar DeRozan, led the way, scoring 22 points. This season's leading scorer, Coby White, managed only 13 points on 5-of-16 shooting.
White's substandard outing came right after a then-career-high 42 points against the Atlanta Hawks in the first round of the Play-In Tournament. The 6-foot-5 guard went 15-of-21 from the floor, also adding nine rebounds and six assists in the 131-116 trounce.
Coby White is Chicago's obvious Play-In X-factor
The inconsistent performances foreshadowed the beginning of White's next campaign. White's field goal percentage fluctuated wildly to begin 2024 as he played second fiddle to Zach LaVine. Fortunately for White, the Bulls shipped LaVine to Sacramento at the trade deadline. Following the two-time All-Star's departure, White exploded. He averaged 27.7 points and won Eastern Conference Player of the Month in March before scoring 22.3 points while slashing 54.4/40.0/97.1 in April.
Although White has played well post-LaVine, he hasn't necessarily done so hot against the Heat (no pun intended), whom Chicago faced all three times since jettisoning LaVine. White averaged 20.3 points in the three contests—on par with his season average. However, he shot 39.1 percent from the field and a paltry 20.0 percent from beyond the arc.
In Chicago's most recent win against Miami, Josh Giddey carried much of the burden. Giddey recorded an absurd triple-double, scoring 28 points, grabbing 16 rebounds, and dishing out 11 assists. White scored 18 points, but go figure, he shot 5-of-14 from the field and 0-of-5 from downtown.
Over the three-game season series versus Miami, Giddey averaged 26.0 points, 10.3 rebounds, and 10.0 assists. Unfortunately for White and the Bulls, it's unclear if Giddey can be relied upon at 100 percent capacity on Wednesday. Giddey missed three of Chicago's last four contests and was recently spotted sporting a brace on his troublesome right wrist.
Consequently, it's up to White to carry the scoring burden—something he proved capable of, albeit not against the Heat. Miami boasts a top-10 defense; nonetheless, it has been susceptible to guards, i.e., Giddey. The Heat are far more versatile in the frontcourt, which includes Bam Adebayo, Andrew Wiggins, and Kel'el Ware, than in the backcourt, consisting of Herro and, most recently, Alec Burks.
While a team's best player isn't typically an X-factor, in this case, it is. White only took the best player mantle following the LaVine trade. An argument can even be made that Giddey, or Nikola Vucevic, is the Bulls' most important player. Furthermore, White's Play-In inconsistency is notable and will be further magnified now without suiting up next to a star, such as DeRozan. The Bulls will surely count on White with the playoffs on the line.