Coby White expects to close games for Charlotte but says Kon Knueppel and Brandon Miller also need late-game opportunities to continue growing.
Coby White, 26, expects to share the late-game load in Charlotte with Kon Knueppel and Brandon Miller, the new Charlotte Hornets point guard said at media day Monday.
Charlotte acquired White from the Chicago Bulls in February and gave him a three-year, $74 million contract in July. LaMelo Ball, who had run the Hornets' offense, went to the Minnesota Timberwolves in a June 25 trade.
White Has Experience Closing Games
White said the challenge of running the Hornets late in games is nothing he has not seen before. He handled a similar responsibility during his final seasons with Chicago.
"I think that's really not [new]," White said. "I was that way in Chicago most of the time. The last two years before I got traded here, I was in that role the last five minutes of the game. The ball was pretty much in my hands, and I had to go make a play, whether it was for myself or for a teammate. So I got a little bit of experience in that role, but continued to just get better at it."
"Those last five minutes obviously decides, really decides the game most of the time in this league just because it's so competitive," White continued. "Obviously the first three quarters are important, but I think we all know the last five minutes really decides how the game's going, and everything is intensified, right? So you can never play the game, the last five minutes, how you play the game the first five minutes. So all the details matter, all the habits matter."
DeMar DeRozan Helped White Learn Clutch Situations
White also learned from watching DeMar DeRozan operate in late-game situations during their time together with the Bulls.
"I think I've seen so much throughout my career in terms of playing with guys like DeMar, his mindset in those moments, how he views the game in those moments," White added. "And me and him became close in those moments just because I was obviously out there with him, but the ball was in his hands. And I got to see emotionally how does he carry himself, mentally how does he carry himself. And I think that helped me for those years when I became that role in Chicago."
DeRozan spent three seasons with the Bulls, from 2021-22 through 2023-24, and finished second in the league in total clutch points in each of them.
In 2023-24, he was a finalist for Clutch Player of the Year, and he told the Chicago Tribune's Julia Poe that season that White should get the ball more at the end of games. He led the NBA with 550 fourth-quarter points and set a franchise record with 56 overtime points, and the Bulls led the league with 27 clutch wins and seven overtime wins.
Chicago finished 39-43. White started 78 of 79 games, averaged 19.1 points, and finished second to Tyrese Maxey for Most Improved Player.
On March 4, 2024, against the Sacramento Kings, White hit the go-ahead layup with under a minute left. DeRozan said afterward that White no longer had to worry about mistakes or missed shots.
That April, White scored 42 points in a play-in win over the Atlanta Hawks.
White Wants Knueppel, Miller to Get Late-Game Opportunities
White does not expect every late-game possession to belong to him in Charlotte. He wants Knueppel and Miller to get those opportunities as part of their development.
"And my job here is to obviously be that guy, but it's going to be moments in order for, like, Kon and Brandon to be in those moments as well, and it's also my job to help those guys in those moments and give them the leeway to have those moments, because that's the only way their growth is going through that," White detailed. "So I'm excited for it. So I mean, it'll be a collective unit. I wouldn't say it's just all on my shoulders. We got talented guys out here that can make plays as well."
DeRozan left for Sacramento in 2024. In 2024-25, White averaged a career-high 20.4 points, and from Feb. 28 to April 6, 2025, he scored at least 20 points in 18 of 19 games. Chicago went 9-0 that season when he scored 30 or more.
White Already Delivered in Charlotte's Play-In Run
In Charlotte, his chance came in the play-in. On April 14 against the Miami Heat, White made a 3-pointer with 10.8 seconds left in regulation to force overtime.
LaMelo Ball, who had 30 points and 10 assists, scored the winner in overtime, and Charlotte held on 127-126. Knueppel went 0-of-6 from 3-point range that night.
White finished with 19 points off the bench. Three nights later, the Hornets lost 121-90 at Orlando in the second play-in game.
Knueppel led the league with 273 3-pointers as a rookie. Miller led Charlotte at 20.2 points per game.
The Hornets open Oct. 21 at Brooklyn, with tip-off at 7:30 p.m. ET.
