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Chicago Bulls guard Coby White narrowly missed out on winning the 2024 Kia Most Improved Player award, finishing in second place behind Tyrese Maxey of the Philadelphia 76ers in the final voting.
To say nothing of Maxey’s deservedness, Bulls guard Alex Caruso offered a brief and to-the-point reaction.
“Coby robbed #MIP,” Caruso posted on X on April 23.
Caruso previously pushed for White to get an invite to the three-point contest. And the Bulls tried to help push him over the top with a hype video on social media, highlighting White’s growth this season.
White, 24, averaged 19.1 points on 57% true shooting with 5.1 assists and 4.5 rebounds this season, shooting 37.6% from beyond the arc.
White’s 9.4 PPG increase over last season is superior to Maxey’s 5.6 PPG.
Maxey, 23, is also coming off his third straight season with better scoring numbers, averaging 25.9 points, 6.2 assists, and 3.7 rebounds in 2023-24. He also earned his first All-Star nod this season, keeping the 76ers afloat in Joel Embiid’s absence.
White was coming off back-to-back seasons of regression, averaging 15.1 points as a sophomore in 2020-21.
That shouldn’t factor into a one-off award, though.
History of the Most Improved Player Favored Tyrese Maxey Over Coby White
There is precedent for giving the award to bounce-back players, the most recent being the reigning winner: former Bull and current Utah Jazz star Lauri Markkanen. Markkanen suffered a similar trajectory with the Bulls before finding his stride with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
It took him another season to take the award home, and it came with his first All-Star appearance too.
The All-Star nod is not an inherent knock against White. But it underscores Maxey’s win.
Each of the last five winners has earned their first All-Star appearance the same season as winning Most Improved Player. Pascal Siakam, then with the Toronto Raptors was the last winner to have no All-Star appearances to his credit before taking the award.
Most of the players also landed on the radar for Most Improved before actually winning, though the last two winners – Markkanen and Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant – did not.
Morant’s victory sparked even more backlash over the award going to an established star.
Morant had earned Rookie of the Year two seasons earlier. He did, however, experience an 8.3 PPG increase over his previous season and earn the aforementioned All-Star game appearance.
Coby White Could be on Short List for Most Improved Player, All-Star in 2024-25 if Bulls Make Changes
Bulls executive vice president of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas said changes are coming to the Bulls’ roster.
White came out of the gates cold this season. He should enter the season on the Most Improved shortlist. And if he proves this season was no fluke – with another step forward – it’s not far-fetched to think those changes could allow White more freedom from the outset of the season to produce.
Zach LaVine’s injuries cleared a path. It’s up to the Bulls to keep it clear for White.
The Bulls have tried unsuccessfully to offload LaVine’s contract since at least the 2022-23 trade deadline. They may need to take their efforts to another level this offseason.
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