Coby White said there were talks.
And not just a one-and-done, either.
His representation and the Bulls front office had several discussions about a contract extension for the free agent to be since the summer.
“But you know things change,” White said on Tuesday, making his return to the United Center for the first time since being shipped to Charlotte just before the Feb. 5 trade deadline.
Oh, things have changed.
White is now part of a Hornets organization that is fighting for a playoff spot and one of the hotter teams in the Eastern Conference, evident by the 131-99 dismantling of his former team. Meanwhile, the Bulls (24-35) have now lost 10 straight, reiterating that the roster purge was in fact a decision to finally tank.
“The way the season was going, we really weren’t stacking enough wins consistently, so like I always said from the jump, I support whatever they think is best for the team,” White said of the Bulls and the decision to move him. “This organization believed in me, they gave me a chance and an opportunity to live out my dreams, so I just want to see the organization succeed.”
That might be a while.
Playing his first game since the trade, White’s calf strain was finally healed and allowed him to come off the bench and get 16 minutes of work in, scoring 10 points on 4-of-9 shooting. Not that the visiting team needed much from him, especially with what they handed the Bulls in the third quarter.
Not only did Charlotte outscore the Bulls 42-16 coming out of the halftime locker room but did so in embarrassing fashion. They scored 17 points off 10 Bulls turnovers in the stanza, had 14 fast break points and had 12 assists to the Bulls’ two.
“The turnovers are a problem, they are a major problem, and we have to continue to get that resolved,” Bulls coach Billy Donovan said. “When there are mistakes that are made and they are constantly compounded, I think it takes away the fuel and the gas from our team and we’ve got to be tougher than that.
“We also got to be more responsible to that. All of us, coaches and players, have to do a much better job in terms of trying to help one another. I sensed the frustration (in the third) and being deflated.”
If there was one positive it was a career-high 32 point for Matas Buzelis, but that’s where it ended.
As for White, his hope is to stay healthy, get his hometown team to the postseason, and then worry about his contract and future come July, when free agency starts.
“They (Charlotte’s front office personnel) did some podcasts saying they want me to be a Hornet for a long time,” White said. “I don’t think they would have said it if they didn’t mean it. Obviously, I want to be a Hornet for a long time.
“Obviously I’m in a very great situation with a really good team that has talent, really good players, good coaches, and they’re building something special here. Like I always say, I just want to be a small part of it and try and help anyway I can.”
As for his old team, he doesn’t look back in a negative way at all.
“The basketball was always basketball, that’s what I did, but I think the people here that I met, built relationships with was the thing that was the hardest for me,” White said. “You get used to seeing these people every day but now you don’t.”
[](https://chicago.suntimes.com/authors/joe-cowley)
Chicago Sun-TimesChicago Bulls reporter