The Chicago Bulls still haven't decided if they're buyers or sellers with the NBA Trade Deadline just a week away, but Coby White is a player they're reportedly not going to trade before Feb. 9.
The team is expected to remain relatively quiet at this year's deadline, according to The Athletic's Darnell Mayberry, but he asserts that “it's a core that remains fragmented for the foreseeable future while customary starting point guard Lonzo Ball recovers from last year's knee surgery.”
With the Bulls sitting at 23-27 with 32 games remaining and fighting for their Play-In Tournament lives, Coby White was a player who seemed expendable at the beginning of the season. The way he has played in 2022-23, that no longer seems to be the case.
White has significantly improved his shooting and overall play this season, and he's transformed into a useful player for the team, rather than a trade chip and the odd man out in the Bulls' rotation.
Chicago probably still doesn't have a final decision on whether they will buy or sell at this year's deadline, per Mayberry, and that decision will probably be dictated by the market in the next seven days.
Mayberry ranks White as the team's sixth-best asset, behind Alex Caruso, Patrick Williams, Nikola Vucevic, DeMar DeRozan and Zach LaVine, in that order.
“[White] entered the season as little more than insurance in the event Ball couldn’t make it back, the most likely odd man out in a crowded backcourt. And despite a significantly reduced role, minutes cut, limited scoring opportunities and injury, White has managed to morph into the most complete player he’s ever been,” Mayberry wrote on Thursday.
Although Coby White does have trade value should the Chicago Bulls ending up being sellers ahead of next Thursday, the Bulls have rejected offers for the 22-year-old former first-rounder.
As Mayberry concludes, there's a very good chance White remains part of Chicago's long-term plans, regardless of the level of concern surrounding Lonzo Ball, and the team is actively considering his future with the franchise.
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