MILWAUKEE — Fiserv Forum holds a quietly important place in Coby White’s career.
Two and a half years ago, White sat at his locker in Milwaukee feeling helpless. The Chicago Bulls had just fumbled through the final loss of a 4-1 gentleman’s sweep by the Bucks in the first round of the Eastern Conference playoffs. White had barely made an impact in the game — barely, if he was honest, made an impact in the entire series.
It was the end of his third NBA season and his first taste of the playoffs, and White felt he hadn’t lived up to his potential. So he set a new standard of expectations. He changed his workout plans and spent the next two summers reshaping himself as a ballhandler.
Last season he saw that recommitment pay off as the Bulls’ firmly cemented starting point guard. He averaged 19.1 points and 5.1 assists and finished second in Most Improved Player voting in a breakout season that included a 42-point performance in a first-round play-in tournament win.
But the fruits of that labor have soured quickly. White isn’t starting at point guard this season. He was shifted off the ball to accommodate the arrival of Josh Giddey, a 22-year-old point guard whom the Bulls acquired in a trade with the Oklahoma City Thunder for Alex Caruso.
It’s not the next step White, 24, expected after the best year of his career. And as he balances his responsibilities as a leader for the Bulls, he still is reeling from being asked to shift out of his comfort zone again.
“There’s some frustration there,” White said. “That’s kind of what I worked toward my whole life. But winning takes sacrificing. You’ve got to sacrifice something to win. So if this sacrifice — me being off the ball more — if that’s what it is, then I’m going to have to just get used to it and try to maneuver it.”
White at least had the chance last season to control his role. The battle for the starting point guard job was clearly marked out in the preseason.
This year it wasn’t even a conversation. White said he never sat down with coach Billy Donovan or any member of the front office to discuss his new role before training camp. But he knew what was happening the moment the Bulls made the trade with the Thunder in June.
Giddey was coming in as a starter. Lonzo Ball was on his way back. And White knew without asking that he would be the one asked to move off the ball — again.
“That’s where I’m at my best,” White said of playing the point, “but it’s also where Lonzo is at his best and Josh is at his best. There’s no doubt I’m willing to sacrifice for the team if we translate that to winning. It’s going to be a learning curve, but just like everything else, I’ll figure it out.”
Regardless of his role on the court, White entered the offseason with one crucial goal: improving his endurance to make a broader impact this season.
The previous two summers were a different type of grind for White — a daily onslaught of two- and sometimes three-a-day workouts focused on improving his on-ball skills. He wasn’t worried about any type of endurance training that didn’t include a ball in his hand. He needed to improve his abilities at point guard and figured those workouts were strenuous enough to prepare him for any workload.
Then the 2023-24 season arrived — and White quickly realized how much he was missing. By January, he was gassed. By February, his body began to fail him, a tweaked ankle and twinged hip holding him out for short stretches. And by April, he was outlining yet another shift in his offseason plan.
White’s goal for the summer was simple: stretch his endurance to the breaking point. Then repeat. Then repeat again. He loaded his days with heavy cardio, utilizing a high-altitude room at his training facility in Thousand Oaks, Calif., while logging hours on the treadmill and assault bike.
That emphasis on endurance became even more important with DeMar DeRozan’s departure, which led the Bulls to restructure their offensive identity.
White still is expected to be the secondary scorer — but he’s playing off a different star, balancing out Zach LaVine’s high-octane scoring rather than complementing DeRozan’s midrange gam. DeRozan was methodical, slowly breaking down defenses before creating a shot or pass. LaVine plays at a much faster pace, pushing White to keep up as LaVine fires off 3s and surges downhill to the rim.
White doesn’t feel different now, but that’s not the point. He won’t know if all that offseason training paid off until January, when he hopes to feel more resilient than last year.
“Hopefully I’ll see a difference during those moments of the year,” White said. “That’s when it counts.”
Lonzo Ball held out of first game of back-to-back
The Bulls held Ball out of Friday’s game in Milwaukee as part of a long-term plan to manage his workload while he ramps back up from a 2½-season absence due to a left knee injury that required three surgeries.
Although Donovan has not ruled out the possibility Ball will play in back-to-back games by the end of the season, he isn’t expected to play on consecutive nights for the first few months.
With Ball ruled out Friday, he is set to play his first regular-season game at the United Center since January 2022 in Saturday’s home opener against the Thunder. He will continue to be restricted to 14 to 16 minutes for the foreseeable future.
