Bulls guard Coby White is set to be an unrestricted free agent after this season, but Chicago’s front office needs to resist the urge to potentially trade its best scorer.

White will hit the open market and reportedly hopes to find a long-term deal worth at least $30 million annually. If the 25-year-old takes another leap this season, there’s a chance an even richer contract may be waiting for him. And unlike the current Josh Giddey saga, White can take that large sum of money and bolt from the Windy City if he so desires.

Executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas and general manager Marc Eversley must take that risk, however, because the North Carolina alum is on pace to be a key piece of the franchise’s future.

The Chicago Bulls cannot trade Coby White

White is coming off his best NBA season, having posted career highs in points per game (20.4), field goal percentage (45.3), free-throw attempts per game (4.1) and free-throw shooting percentage (90.2).

Zach LaVine was dealt to the Sacramento Kings on Feb. 2, and after a brief adjustment period, White became Chicago’s go-to scorer.

Once he dropped 24 points on Feb. 28 in an overtime win against the Toronto Raptors, White scored 20 or more points in 15 consecutive games, averaging 28.8 over that span. He scored 44 (on 7-of-15 shooting from three) in a two-point win over the Orlando Magic on March 6.

The Bulls were 9-5 across those 14 games.

The six-year pro is heading into the final season of a three-year, $36 million extension he signed in 2023 and will bank just $12.9 million. That makes him eligible for a four-year, $89 million extension right now, but he will make more than double that on the open market next summer.

While he may never become one of the NBA’s premier bucket-getters, White has already shown the potential to be a second scoring option at the very least, and it’s not unreasonable to expect him to take another jump this year for a team that wants to run and gun the way Chicago does. He’ll be an important cog in the machine, not only as a scorer, but as a playmaker — he averaged 4.5 assists last season and 5.1 in 2023-24.

It’s undoubtedly a gamble; White can leave for nothing next offseason, but the Bulls have to resist jumping the gun and trading him when he can be such a vital part of the future.