As the Celtics are just about at the midway point of their season, the new additions are still getting used to their new teammates. But the chemistry is clearly developing during the regular season, whether that’s Kristaps Porzingis or Jrue Holiday out there with the rest of the C’s core.
Holiday has impressed even though his counting stats are naturally down. He put up a season-high 22 points in the Celtics’ 105-96 win over the Raptors on Monday. But he still had some time to praise his new Celtics teammate in Derrick White.
“He’s an All-Star,” Holiday told NBC Sports Boston’s Abby Chin. “I think the things that he does, lots of times goes unnoticed. The way that he plays, the way that he carries this team — especially with (Jaylen Brown) out tonight. He hit a big shot there in the corner. That’s what D-White does.”
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White has put together some impressive two-way play this season, averaging 15.7 points, 4.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game. The stats don’t pop off the page, but as Holiday said, White’s contributions don’t necessarily show up on the box score. His defense is also a huge part of his game, coming off an All-Defensive team selection from last season.
White’s All-Star push has been relatively put on pause recently as he’s had some quiet games. Considering the All-Star voting results, he’ll likely have to be voted in as a reserve, which is up to the coaches. But the Celtics have the league’s best record and White has played as an elite role player, so he certainly has a case as those debates will continue.
The Celtics have impressed all season with their impressive cast of starters, employing the best top-6 rotation in the league. Each member of the starting lineup has seemingly had their time in the spotlight this season, which is a testament to the talent on the team.
“We got a good balance,” Holiday said. “We kind of know where to find our spots and where we can go. I think the end of that second quarter, maybe it was the third quarter, (Jayson Tatum) started going off and he ended up with 19 at the end of that quarter. I think just different spots. We were really good at figuring out where we can go and let that person go and start getting buckets.”
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