BOSTON — While Derrick White didn’t have a great start shooting the ball against the Knicks on Monday, the Celtics starter saved his best for the crucial moments. There was a clutch steal against Jalen Brunson, along with knocking down just one of his latest pull-up 3s to put the Knicks away.
That performance encapsulated White’s tenure in Boston as the Celtics downed the Knicks 114-98 to improve to 8-2 on the season. While the C’s don’t ask White to rain down points, he still impacts the game in multiple ways. He’s been one of the Celtics’ most valuable players ever since he arrived in Boston at the 2022 trade deadline from the Spurs.
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So there was some confusion when ESPN dropped a top-100 player ranking before the season … and White wasn’t anywhere to be found. Celtics teammate Jayson Tatum took a shot at those rankings Monday.
“D-White’s a helluva basketball player,” Tatum said. “It’s a damn shame they left him off the top-100 players. That’s why I never pay attention to (expletive) like that. D-White is so valuable, we’re so lucky to have him and even when he’s not shooting the ball well and he makes winning plays like getting that back tap, little things like that. Always competes on defense, contesting shots.”
That reaction isn’t surprising as Tatum and the Celtics know just how valuable White is on a nightly basis. He also had the Celtics’ signature playoff moment last year when his game-winning bucket in Game 6 of the East Finals forced a Game 7. While the C’s weren’t able to get back to the NBA Finals, they’re looking to do so again this season.
White is currently averaging 12.5 points, 3.8 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game as he plays both ends of the court. He also welcomed the birth of his second child this season. In the meantime, White has once again showed his value even if some rankings might disagree.
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