NEWSLETTER
What do you think Coby White’s favorite movie is?
Wrong. It’s Monsters, Inc.
Color me surprised, but I’m not hating! I mean, you’re reading a post from a guy who watched Toy Story at least twice a day when he was five. And you know what? Maybe I’ll start that up again. When in quarantine … and such.
ANYWAY, we learned this little Coby White tidbit on the latest edition of the Bulls Talk Podcast, where he and his brother Will joined the show to talk about, well, a lot. Safe and sound at home in Goldsboro, North Carolina, the two opened up about life growing up, their late father, and Coby’s basketball history. Oh, and they played a fun game to test how well they know each other.
So if you’re bored of just sitting on your couch, why not sit on your couch and listen to this podcast!
At the beginning of the interview, Coby did share his disappointment with the sudden NBA suspension, a feeling I’m sure many players across the league share right now. With it being his rookie season though, and his last several games being the best of his young career, I’m sure it was especially frustrating to be hit with an indefinite hiatus (and now, probably, a 25% salary reduction).
Indeed, over his last nine games, White began to establish himself as one of the elite rookies in the NBA, averaging 26.1 points with 4.2 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game. I’m sure returning to that level will be quite the challenge, but fortunately, it sounds like he’s keeping his body and mind right. Coby said he’s been using at-home workouts (coordinated by the Bulls), which apparently make him feel like he’s throwing it back to his middle school days (uh, were we supposed to be working out in middle school?).
With the boys back at home though, Bulls Talk Podcast host Jason Goff got a tad nostalgic. He asked both brothers to share the moment they thought Hey, this whole NBA thing might actually happen.
According to Coby, it wasn’t until he was a senior in high school: “I knew the NBA was possible for my senior year when we were playing at the John Wall Classic. It was a lot of competition out there. I think I broke the scoring record in the three games, I think I scored 116 or something like that in three games.”
Uh, yeah, I’d say that could spark some self-realization.
As for Will, he said he realized his brother could turn pro much earlier, specifically Coby’s sophomore year of high school when he broke the North Carolina single-season scoring record. Two years later, Coby would become the state’s all-time high school scoring leader. I think it’s safe to say he’s NC royalty: “You could feel the energy. You could feel the sense of love. I mean, where I’m from in Goldsboro, people don’t really hate on people. They want to see other people succeed, so where I’m from people support me, they encourage me. They keep telling me to keep putting on for the city. I’m doing big things.”
As the interview continued, the brothers opened up about the loss of their father. Coby said he carries himself like his old man and elaborated a bit on the fantastic Player’s Tribune article he wrote in June of 2019. Later, the two then played the who-knows-who better game, which will put a smile on your face.
After some talk about Coby’s relationship with Chris Paul (which started back when he was 16), White ended the interview with some wise words: “Stay positive. Pray on it. Nothing lasts forever, so as a community, as a unit, we’ll definitely get through this and move on and see what’s in store. But, like I said, just stay positive and keep your mental right.”
You got to love this guy. I can’t wait to see him back on the court soon.
