Chicago Bulls shooting guard Coby White has utilized the slighest slivers of opportunity to prove he’s one of the best players at his position. It’s a truth that’s gone painfully underreported outside of Chicago, as most are still lamenting what’s been labeled as an underwhelming return from the Zach LaVine trade.

A recent batch of player rankings have revealed just how undervalued White still is as a player—a truth that’s unlikely to last beyond the 2025-26 season.

White, 25, has spent the first six seasons of his NBA career fighting for consistent opportunities in rotations that have been flush with high-volume veterans. During that time, he’s taken criticism in stride, improving as a scorer and playmaker depending on what the circumstances dictate.

HoopsHype recently ranked the Top 26 shooting guards in the NBA, respecting White’s progress but citing questions about his impact on winning as reason to omit him from the Top 10.

“On the other hand, Chicago was 4.1 points per 100 possessions worse with White on the floor last year and went 39-43 on the year, missing the playoffs for the third season in a row, so questions remain on White’s actual impact on winning.”

For as valid as those concerns may be, there’s context that should have Bulls fans eager to see White make the leap and become a definitive Top 10 player at his position in 2025-26.

Coby White omitted from Top 10 shooting guards in the NBA

White finished the 2024-25 regular season averaging 20.4 points, 4.5 assists, 3.7 rebounds, 0.9 steals, and 2.9 three-point field goals made per game. He did so on an efficient slash line of .453/.370/.902, posting an eFG% of .550 that was above the league average.

That alone offers reason to rank White among the best shooting guards in the NBA, especially when one considers that this was the first season during which he wasn’t primarily playing out of position.

The real measure of White’s season, however, is what transpired after LaVine played his last game for the Bulls on Jan. 27—when the team was 20-27. White appeared in 34 of the 35 games that followed, averaging a team-high 22.9 points per contest on .470/.378/.922 shooting.

During that time, Chicago went 19-15—and White played 212 more minutes than any other player on the roster.

This wasn’t the first time that White has taken his game to another level with LaVine out of the picture. In 2023-24, LaVine’s season ended on Jan. 18—with Chicago residing at 20-23. It went 19-20 the rest of the way, improving its winning percentage from .465 to .487 despite despite losing the franchise player.

Much as he was in 2024-25, White was the driving force behind Chicago’s success, averaging 19.7 points and 5.4 assists per game.

There will be a learning curve as White prepares to take on a more consistently featured role on offense. That could yield some degree of polarizing results. The reality is, however, that he’s consistently stepped up when his number has been called.

White has areas in which he must improve, but if his stretches without LaVine proved anything, it’s that he’s ready to lead the Bulls to a postseason level of play.