Coby White, a North Carolina commit who hails from Greenfield School (Wilson, N.C.), is one of the most prolific scorers in the country, regardless of class, and the reigning Gatorade Player of the Year for North Carolina. The 6-foot-4 point guard dominated the prestigious Nike EYBL this past summer and lost his father to cancer in August. Now he’s dedicated his career to his father and has agreed to keep a blog with USA Today chronicling everything from intimate details about his life to basketball and everything in between.
Well, what’s up world, it’s Coby White coming at you with my first blog for USA TODAY Sports. I just wanted to give everyone a look inside my life to see how everything is going for me, so let’s get it started.
First, I want to talk about how I came up with the name for my blog.
I decided to name it “For My Father” simply because I’m dedicating the rest of my career to him. My dad passed on Aug. 15 and it hit me hard, but I’m working through it every day and getting stronger.
MORE: Coby White finds new motivation after the loss of his father
I know he’s always here with me and that keeps me going strong.
This summer was hard going through everything with my dad and every time I stepped onto the court I couldn’t help but to think about him and everything he was battling with cancer. But he would always try to get out to my tournaments.
He loved to watch me play!
I just put everything into basketball and went out and had a big summer. I definitely feel like I grew a lot mentally this summer with everything that I had to go through.
I know this will only make me stronger.
I definitely want to thank Coach (Roy) Williams here on my blog! He’s the best. He and the whole staff came to my father’s funeral and he’s been there for me the whole time. Coach (Steve) Robinson calls me every week to check on me too, and I just can’t tell y’all how much I appreciate that. The entire North Carolina staff is so supportive.
Coach Williams gave me the best advice recently when he told me not to wake up every day feeling like the weight of the world is on my shoulders and that I have to prove something. He just told me the only thing my dad would want is for me to give it my best shot and have fun.
Feels good to know I’m going to a true family environment next year in Chapel Hill!
I had my in-home visit with Coach Williams last week and that was great!
We met for about two hours and talked about everything. Of course part of it was a little emotional because my dad wasn’t there, but we got through it.
I think one of the best parts was when I got to try on the 2017 national championship ring! Coach Williams brought a case full of different title rings he’s won over the years.
It was crazy!
But this year’s ring was way bigger than the other ones. Just having that ring on gave me chills!
Hopefully one day I’ll be wearing my own.
We talked about where I’ll fit in when I get there and they see me as a 1 and a 2. They want me to be ready to play both and, for me, I love having the ball, but I want to be effective with the ball out of my hands too.
I’ve already started my senior year and overall things are going good.
It’s not too hard because it’s my last year, but I set a goal of 3.6 for a GPA so I’m putting in the work to get that done.
Getting it done in the classroom is very important to me.
As for my team, we’re looking good.
We’ve got a couple new pieces that will help us a lot. This is probably the hardest working team I’ve been a part of and I know that’s gonna pay off.
The goal is to win a state title and if we play to the level that we’re capable of I think we can get it done.
I’m definitely looking forward to the John Wall Holiday Invitational!
That’s gonna be a lot of fun, I already know that.
Our Christmas tournament that we host is gonna be fun too. All the people of Wilson come out and support us, so it’s always really deep.
Personally, I have a goal to be the all-time leading scorer in North Carolina history and I want to make the McDonald’s All American Game.
That’s always been a dream of mine, just watching all of the great players that have played in that game. I love how they go out and see the kids at the Ronald McDonald House and help out in the community. I have to be a part of that, so I’m working!
The other goal is to make the Jordan Brand Game.
Just to be associated with a game for the greatest player of all-time would be a big accomplishment for me.
Other than that I just want to grow as a leader. I want to be more vocal, create for others and really direct my teammates on where they need to be and things like that.
OK, so let’s talk a little bit about music right now.
I listen to all types of music, but mostly rap. I like J. Cole the most because he really talks about things that matter. He talks about current events and he sheds a light on things that are going on in the world. I love that about him.
Oh you guys should check out “Last Chance U” on Netflix! That was great.
OK, so I want to end my blog a little different; since it’s for my father I want to end it by praying for him the way I do every night. I just feel like it’s only right since he prayed every night and he’s my motivation now.
Dear God, watch over my father’s soul. I know he’s having a great time up there in paradise, and I know he’s watching out for me and my family as I continue to pursue my dreams and make him proud.
Amen.
Don’t forget to follow Coby White:
Twitter: @whitecoby4
