SALT LAKE CITY — Coby White is used to being on the opposing team’s scouting report. He made sure of that with his step up in play for the Bulls last season.
But, as he has learned since fellow guard Zach LaVine was traded in early February, there’s a big difference between being on the scouting report and being in the crosshairs.
That’s the evolution he’s now working through — obviously with some success, as evidenced by his being named Eastern Conference Player of the Week on Monday ahead of the Bulls’ 111-97 win over the Jazz.
The pressure on him isn’t about to stop. The Rockets guarded him with purpose late in the Bulls’ loss in Houston on Saturday, and he faced similar defense against the Jazz, even as he scored a game-high 26 points while the Bulls improved to 29-39 and moved to the No. 9 spot in the East, jumping past the Heat. It was White’s ninth straight game of 20-plus points, a career best.
“You could see it a little bit in the Houston game late — [Dillon] Brooks was just face-guarding him and denying him,” Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. “That probably has not happened to him before. Generally, that would have been Zach or [former Bulls forward] DeMar [DeRozan], one of those guys that they would have tried to take out, so he’s adjusting to that.”
And embracing it. For White, taking the brunt of the defense is a badge — one that will require a lot more work to keep wearing.
“[It’s] just picking and choosing and then being aggressive,” he said of his adjustments. “A lot of times, especially early on, [teammates] were telling me, ‘You’ve got to shoot more.’ So I’ve had to change my mindset a little bit. . . . When Zach was here, I was the second or third option with [Nikola Vucevic], and now it is what it is.
“I’ve still got a long way to go in adjusting with getting the best defender every night, but it’s a very exciting time for me to learn. The way I look at it is, I can only get better from this. That’s what I’m focused on, taking on that challenge every night and getting better, gaining more information from every game and the way teams are strategizing against me.”
The Jazz (15-54) were the latest to try to confuse White with different looks. In the first quarter, they used more of a straight-up defense, and White scored nine points just by playing aggressively. But then they started paying closer attention to him, giving him less room on the perimeter and using their bigs to blow up screen attempts. White shifted to being a distributor and handed out three assists in the second quarter.
“The one thing he’s done a better job of, and we’ve talked to him about it, stylistically how we’re playing, he’s got to find it a lot in transition and in broken-floor situations,” Donovan said.
In other words, don’t give the defense time to handcuff him.
“He’s done a much better job of running, getting into areas of the floor where guys are able to find him, and he’s been able to play against closeouts,” Donovan added. “But I do believe it’s been a learning curve for him. He kind of leans into that stuff. When he doesn’t have good performances, he’s always going to be pretty self-reflected, gets upset with himself, and always, for the most part, responds. But this has been a good period for him as far as his growth and trying to take that next step as a player.”
Tre Jones added 18 points and 12 assists. Former Bull Lauri Markkanen and Keyonte George led the Jazz with 16 points each.