Predict Every NBA Team’s Top Scorer This Season | News, Scores, Highlights, Stats & Rumors

One of the many suboptimal aspects of acquiring Josh Giddey (he’s extension-eligible, doesn’t defend, and would serve the Chicago Bulls better if he were a future first-round pick) is the potentially damaging effect on 2023-24 star player Coby White.

White grew on all fronts last season, but his development as an off-the-dribble shooter was particularly intriguing. In 2022-23, 9.8 percent of White’s field-goal attempts were pull-up threes, and he connected on just 27.6 percent of them. Last year, those same shots accounted for 12.3 percent of White’s field goals, and he connected on them at a 40.4 percent clip.

Because Giddey doesn’t scare defenses as a shooter, he has to be on the ball, which could hurt White’s chances of continuing the progress he made last year.

But assuming Zach LaVine misses too much time to qualify or, more likely, plays for another team before the end of the season, this feels like a scoring race White has to lose. And who knows, maybe Giddey will flourish as a primary creator and help White score a few easy extra points per game. Say what you will about the Australian guard’s defense and shooting, but no one has ever questioned his unselfishness or passing acumen.