Coby White has found himself in a spot that makes plenty of sense to him.
The Bulls sent White to the Charlotte Hornets last February, and for the Goldsboro, North Carolina native, the move carried a little extra meaning. White grew up in North Carolina, played high school basketball at Greenfield School in Wilson, and went to UNC. So when he looked at his new home, the fit felt natural.
"I'm right where I'm supposed to be, I'm right where I belong," White said.
White’s time in Charlotte started well. In 21 games with the Hornets, he averaged 15.6 points while shooting 46.1% from the field, 39.1% from 3-point range and 83.9% at the foul line. Across the full 2025-26 season with Chicago and Charlotte, he finished at 17.4 points per game.
Chicago drafted White seventh overall in the 2019 NBA Draft, and he has built a solid career since then. He owns regular-season averages of 15.4 points per game and playoff averages of 8.4.
Now White is set for a bigger role in Charlotte. With LaMelo Ball dealt to the Minnesota Timberwolves this offseason, White is expected to start for the Hornets this season. Kevin O'Connor of Yahoo Sports believes White could make his first NBA All-Star team this year.
Charlotte’s projected starting group also includes Kon Knueppel, Brandon Miller, Naz Reid and Moussa Diabaté. Zach Buckley of Bleacher Report ranked that lineup 24th in the NBA. It’s Year 1 of the post-Ball-Miles Bridges era, and Charles Lee’s team will open the 2026-27 season on the road against the Brooklyn Nets before hosting the Atlanta Hawks in the home opener.
The young core around White has plenty of buzz. Miller played 65 games last season in his third NBA year, putting up 20.2 points, 4.9 rebounds and 3.3 assists while shooting 43.5% from the floor, 38.3% from deep and 89.2% from the line. The second pick in the 2023 draft, Miller now carries career averages of 19.0 points, 4.6 rebounds and 3.0 assists.
Knueppel’s rookie season was also a big one, even without the 2025-26 Rookie of the Year award. He averaged 18.5 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.4 assists, shot 47.5% overall, 42.5% from 3 and 86.3% from the free-throw line, and led the NBA in 3-pointers.
Reid gives Charlotte another proven piece. The 2023-24 Sixth Man of the Year enters the season with career regular-season averages of 11.9 points, 5.1 rebounds and 1.5 assists, plus playoff averages of 10.6 points, 4.8 rebounds and 1.4 assists. Last season in Minnesota, he averaged 13.6 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists while shooting 45.6% from the field, 36.2% from 3 and 73.2% from the free-throw line, and he had six double-doubles.
With Ball and Bridges gone, White is stepping into a new chapter in a place that already feels familiar.
In Other News...
Hornets Face A Tough Roster Call Before Opening Night
With opening night approaching, the Hornets are among several teams still sorting through the bottom end of the roster and monitoring the market for possible movement. Around the league, those decisions are often tied to one another, and the latest chatter underscores how quickly a fringe rotation spot can shift from secure to uncertain as teams weigh trades, waivers and last-minute fits.
According to reports from Jake Fischer of The Stein Line, that wider offseason board includes multiple clubs exploring roster moves, with the Bucks and Lakers discussing a possible Jericho Sims-Dalton Knecht deal and Milwaukee also evaluating other options. Charlottes interest in those ripple effects is less about one specific name than the bigger picture: a crowded market can open doors, but it can also force tough calls before the first game is even played. [Read more 🡒]
Hornets Face An Awkward Choice With One Recent First Round Pick
As the Hornets sort through their roster before the NBA season, one of the more delicate decisions centers on whether to keep veteran Pat Connaughton around. On paper, it is the kind of move teams make for depth and experience, but for Charlotte it also has a ripple effect because the roster math starts to squeeze a recent first-round pick in Tidjane Salaun.
It is the sort of front-office choice that can say as much about timing as talent. Charlotte is still figuring out how to balance immediate stability with the long view, and Connaughtons situation could force that balance into sharp relief. Around the league, Memphis and Dallas are facing similar roster pressure with veterans and young players, which only underscores how quickly these late-summer decisions can reshape the opening-night picture. [Read more 🡒]
Grizzlies Could Make A Surprise GG Jackson Decision Soon
The Grizzlies are getting close to their roster deadline for the upcoming NBA season, and the front office has already started trimming the edges of the group. Memphis has begun waiving players while also taking a harder look at the market, with NBA insider Jake Fischer reporting that the team is exploring trade options involving GG Jackson II and Walter Clayton Jr. It is the kind of late-summer roster housekeeping that can quickly turn into a bigger decision if a team senses there is a move to be made.
For Memphis, the timing matters because the next few days could shape not just the opening roster, but the longer-term path for a pair of young players who still have value around the league. Any trade discussion at this stage carries real weight, especially with the deadline looming and teams trying to decide whether to hold steady or get proactive before the season begins. What happens next could tell a lot about how the Grizzlies view their depth, and how aggressively they want to manage the back end of the roster. [Read more 🡒]