DeMar DeRozan continues encouraging Coby White after the latter’s rough shooting night

Coby White has become not only DeMar DeRozan’s protege but also his most trusted running mate this season. And as the former Tar Heel continues to find his way to stardom, Deebo remains his most ardent supporter. Against the New Orleans Pelicans on Sunday, White had a rough shooting night, finishing the game with only five of his 18 attempts from the floor.

However, four of those shots came when it mattered most: the fourth quarter as the Bulls topped the Pelicans, 114-106. Aside from scoring 24 points—10 in the fourth—DeRozan played a pivotal role in helping White keep his confidence up amidst a challenging shooting night.

It’s not how the game starts

Coby began the game with a long triple but proceeded to miss his next nine shots. It could have been easy for White to begin second-guessing himself. Fortunately, Deebo was in his ear, encouraging him to keep on firing.

“I tell Coby all the time it’s not how it starts but how it finishes,” DeRozan said.

“I always tell him I don’t care how many shots you miss; I’ll live with him missing 50 in a row if that’s the case. Learn from those and understand what those moments are like, and be familiar in that situation. He hit when we needed them.”

How did Coby make this??? 🤯@NBCSChicago | @CobyWhite pic.twitter.com/PWxbJtW7by
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) February 26, 2024

Deebo finishes it off

Despite White’s ascendance up the totem pole, DeRozan remains the Bulls' unquestioned closer. When the game hangs in the balance, Chicago often swings the ball to the veteran wingman and watch him work his magic. Against the Pelicans, the Bulls hung on to a 108-106 lead when DeRozan came up with an offensive rebound off a miss by Nikola Vucevic.

With the shot clock winding down, Deebo pulled the ball back out beyond the arc and rose up for a triple that found nothing but the bottom of the net for a 111-106 lead with 29.9 seconds remaining in the game.

“I looked at it from the standpoint it was like 32 seconds on the clock, we were up two, didn’t want to force a shot, wide open shot, make it (we’re) up five, if I miss it (still) two-for-one basically. I considered that,” said DeRozan.

“So it was a non-pressure shot in that moment. We still would have been able to get the ball back (if they made a shot), so just took what was given to me and not try to force anything.”

COMPTON'S FINEST.@NBCSChicago | @DeMar_DeRozan pic.twitter.com/Z5bGcx9pQA
— Chicago Bulls (@chicagobulls) February 26, 2024

It’s not how the game starts

Deebo finishes it off

DeMar DeRozan reveals what the Chicago Bulls' mentality is on this injury-riddled stretch run