Central Notes: White, Davis, Siakam, Martin, Cunningham, Duren

Bulls guard Coby White made his long-awaited season debut and he didn’t disappoint. White, who was sidelined by a calf strain, scored 27 points and delivered eight assists in a double overtime loss to Utah.

“The coaching staff talked to me about coming back and being aggressive, being who I was,” White said, per Joe Cowley of the Chicago Sun Times. “Not kind of tiptoeing. I focused on that.”

White will be an unrestricted free agent next summer.

We have more from the Central Division:

• Mavericks big man Anthony Davis was born in Chicago. Would the Bulls consider trading for the highly productive but oft-injured Davis? Cowley doubts that, noting that executive VP of basketball operations Arturas Karnisovas said at the start of training camp that ‘‘we have to be patient, we have to do it the right way and we can’t skip steps.” Davis has two more years remaining on his three-year, $175.3MM deal, which includes a player option.
• The Pacers have been decimated by injuries but forward Pascal Siakam says that’s not a strong enough excuse for a 1-12 start. “We are playing in the NBA, the best league in the world,” he told the Indianapolis Star’s Dustin Dopirak. “There shouldn’t be a reason why you’re out there every single night and not giving your best or trying to be the best that you can be and giving it your all. There’s thousands and millions of people who would give everything they have to be in the situation that we’re in. There’s no excuse. Obviously, it’s been tough on us. We have injuries every single day. Guys are in situations that they’re not supposed to be in. But we can’t find it as an excuse and just go out there every single night and be like, ‘Whatever happens happens.’ It has to matter. We have to fight.”
• Cody Martin‘s 10-day contract under the hardship exception expired on Saturday and the Pacers couldn’t sign him to another, according to Dopirak. They currently don’t qualify under the hardship rules. Martin appeared in four games during his brief stay.
• The Pistons could have three starters back tonight against Indiana, including star guard Cade Cunningham. Cunningham has missed the last two games due to a left hip contusion. Ausar Thompson (right ankle sprain) has missed the last three and both players are listed as questionable. Jalen Duren, who has also missed the last two games due to a right ankle sprain, is listed as probable, according to the Detroit Free Press’ Omari Sankofa II.