NEWSLETTER
Zach LaVine clocked 746 total minutes with Coby White this season, the 12th-most of any two-man combination on the team.
Expect that number to go way up next season.
We haven’t seen much of what a White-LaVine backcourt duo can do, but we’ve sure got some nice glimpses. The duo scored 20+ apiece nine times this season, providing a very promising one-two punch on the offensive end of the court. Of course, questions remain about how well these two can coexist in a starting lineup (especially when it comes to defense), but that doesn’t mean we can’t be excited about what the future holds.
After all, LaVine sure does sound like he’s looking forward to playing alongside White. During an Instagram Live with the account BallDontStop on Sunday, LaVine had nothing but positive words to say about his rookie teammate:
Man, Coby’s my guy. He had one of the best training camps I’ve seen from a rookie; I’ve told a lot of people that. He came with it from Day 1. Obviously, he had the ups and downs and sometimes you’re put in a position where you’re not allowed to show your entire game as part of the NBA, I feel like a lot of guys are going through that. But them last 15 games, and even before that, he had so many showing where it’s like ‘man, this kid is off the charts.’
He’s a human flamethrower, man. He’s got stepbacks, hesitations, he has finishing, he can shoot the hell out of the ball, he’s fast, his potential is limitless, man. I’m excited to play with him and be in the backcourt where I think we can be a problem.
YOU. LOVE. TO. SEE. IT.
Hearing LaVine this happy about having White as a teammate has me feeling all sorts of optimistic. The more he respects White’s game (and vice versa), the easier it should be for these two to make this (possibly difficult) backcourt work to the best of its ability.
Not to mention, LaVine’s comments just give us even more reason to be excited about White’s development. Think about it, this guy has seen more of White than any of us, and despite White’s low points (valleys) this season, LaVine still speaks confidently about his future. I know, a player isn’t going to blatantly bash the new kid (except MJ to Kwame Brown … lol), but he also didn’t have to speak this highly of him. All season long we’ve seen a growing connection and respect between these two ballers, and the more I hear comments like this, the more excited I am to see them share the starting lineup next season.
LET’S DO THIS!
Shameless plug alert: I wrote more about the possible White-LaVine combo a couple of weeks ago, so check it out.
