White ranked among nation's best guards

By Ben Coley
Published in Sports on June 19, 2016 1:47 AM

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BEN COLEY

bcoley@newsargus.com

Donald White can remember casually shooting around with his son in their yard. Coby White was just 9 years old at this stage, but this was the point where greatness began to reveal itself.

With the basketball in his hands, Coby stood several feet from the basket -- around the same distance as a 3-pointer. At first, Donald thought the task was too large for his son.

"I said, 'Coby, you're too far out. Why don't you come in?'" Donald recalled. "And he told me, 'Nah dad, I can shoot from right here.' And he put about two or three of them in."

After the display, Donald knew that Coby was filled with potential and destined for success. And seven years later, more of that greatness has been uncovered -- except now, the whole country has tuned in to what his father saw so long ago.

On June 8, ESPN revealed its top 60 recruits for the 2018 class. Coming in at No. 21 was Coby, a 6-foot-5-inch, 175-pound point guard out of Greenfield School in Wilson.

"It was shocking," Coby said. "Growing up, that was one of my dreams. I never expected to be in the top 25."

As a two-year starter at Greenfield, Coby has already zoomed past 1,000 points -- the quickest to do so in the program's 48-year history. This past season alone, the young point guard averaged 28.2 points, eight rebounds and seven assists.

He broke the program's single-game points record with 46 against Neuse Christian Academy, and broke the record for points in a season with 960. Coby also earned Coastal Plains Independent 1-A/-2A Conference Player of the Year and N.C. Independent Schools Association Class 1-A All-State honors.

"Just working hard," Coby said. "Off-season work and my teammates believing in me, and giving me the ball in spots that they know I can score."

Coby has been offered by Clemson, Wake Forest and St. Louis University. He's received interest from several other schools including Duke, Kentucky, Virginia, Arizona, Missouri, Providence, Florida, Ohio State, Iowa State and Tennessee.

He will take an unofficial visit to UNC on June 20.

"It hasn't been that overwhelming," Coby said. "They don't really talk to me. They talk to my coach. They can't really talk to me now."

Donald said that opting for Greenfield has helped with his son's exposure because the team travels to different events, such as the Phenom Hoop National High School Showcase held back in November. Greenfield also plays in the same division that produced Washington Wizards point guard John Wall.

Before enrolling at Greenfield, the young star played basketball for Eastern Wayne Middle School and was scheduled to go to Eastern Wayne High School.

But when he was in the eighth grade, Coby's older brother Will reached out to one of his friends, and helped introduce Coby to Greenfield head coach Rob Salter.

"(Salter) believed in me," Coby said. "And he believed that I was not just one of those players. He put me at point guard my ninth-grade year. And I never really played it before -- he threw me to the wolves, but he always had trust in me, and he believed I could run the team."

Salter is no stranger to talented basketball players. In the early 2000s, Salter won two consecutive state titles with point guard Anthony Atkinson, who eventually led Barton College to the NCAA Division II national title in 2007.

Under his watch, several players have went on to play for Division I schools such as Brian Richardson and Aaron Rountree III, who attended South Carolina and Wake Forest, respectively.

Despite the history of great players, Salter said Coby is on a level that he has not seen before.

"He started for me as a freshman, and I thought he had a chance to be special," Salter said. "I thought I had one of the top freshmen at the time. And Coby this past year was one of the top sophomores in the country. When I saw the rankings come out, I thought he deserved them."

Salter said that Coby's main strength is his versatility because he can score at all three levels -- at the rim, mid-range and the 3-point line.

"You don't see many complete players these days, but I think Coby is a complete player," Salter said. "You could cut one aspect of his offensive game off, but he can still hurt you in other ways."

However, Salter and Coby both know there is room for improvement. Salter believes Coby will need to get bigger physically, and Coby believes he needs to work on his ball-handling skills.

To help push his game further, Coby recently attended the Nike Elite 100 in St. Louis, a camp where top underclassmen hone their skills under the instruction of quality coaches.

"It was a good experience," Coby said. "I got to see a bunch of new talent and play against a bunch of good players. They showed me what level my game was at -- what stuff I'm good at and what stuff I need to work on."

With just two years of high school basketball under his belt, Coby is quickly approaching the career points record at Greenfield. Coby has scored over 1,400 points, and the record -- held by Richardson -- is 2,122 points.

Like most of the defenders that guard him, Coby will most likely blow past the record during his junior campaign.

As Coby works on his game, the box scores will continue to expand and the list of collegiate offers will begin to stretch.

Because Donald, Salter and Coby all know one thing -- more greatness is just waiting to be unleashed.

"By the time he graduates, I think Coby will be the best player to ever come through Greenfield," Salter said. "I think he could end up being one of the top-10 players in his class. I think he's that special."