Coby White Hopes New Hornets Documentary Can 'Give People Hope'

The Charlotte Hornets premiered "Coby White: A Carolina Story" on the team's YouTube channel at 7 p.m. ET on Oct. 15. The film runs 47 minutes and 25 seconds.

It follows White from Goldsboro to the University of North Carolina, where he played for Roy Williams, and back to the state with the Hornets. The Wilson Times reported that the film includes interviews with his Greenfield School head coach and members of his family, along with footage from Greenfield games and his workouts.

White had a left calf strain when the film came out. Eighteen days later, on Monday night, he made his season debut and played 15:55 in a 124-91 loss to the Detroit Pistons.

For White, being vulnerable in the film was the point.

"My whole thing is give people hope," White said. "Hopefully my story changed their life. Hopefully my story touched someone that was in a down moment. And hopefully my story let somebody know that they're not alone."

"I think for me being vulnerable, hopefully it did," White continued. "I'm hoping that it helped someone and hope it changed their life."

Born Feb. 16, 2000, in Goldsboro, White played high school basketball at the Greenfield School in Wilson.

He finished there with 3,573 points, breaking the North Carolina high school scoring record. As a senior, he averaged 31.0 points, 10 rebounds, and 8 assists. He was a two-time Gatorade Player of the Year in North Carolina, the state's Mr. Basketball in 2018, and a McDonald's All-American.

His father, Donald, died of cancer on Aug. 15, 2017, before White's senior season. On Nov. 8 of that year, White signed with North Carolina.

"I'm definitely carrying his legacy with me," White told WTVD that week.

In June 2018, he led the United States at 15.3 points per game at the FIBA U18 Americas Championship in Canada, where the team went 6-0 and won gold.

White spent one season in Chapel Hill. His high there was 34 points against Syracuse on Feb. 26, 2019, and North Carolina's season ended in the Sweet 16 with a 97-80 loss to Auburn.

That June, Chicago took him seventh overall.

His NBA debut came Oct. 23, 2019, at Spectrum Center. Coming off the bench, he had 17 points and 7 assists in 27 minutes, and the Bulls lost 126-125 to the Hornets.

He spent six-plus seasons in Chicago. Charlotte acquired him on Feb. 4, and White has said he is happy the Bulls traded him to the Hornets. In an April 14 play-in game against the Miami Heat, he hit a turnaround 3-pointer with 10.8 seconds left in regulation to force overtime, and Charlotte won 127-126.

The Hornets traded LaMelo Ball to the Minnesota Timberwolves in the offseason. White re-signed on a three-year, $74 million deal and moved into the starting point guard job.

On Monday, he started and finished with 7 points and 3 assists.