As things stand, the Boston Celtics are relying on Derrick White to be their No. 3 option behind Jayson Tatum and Paul George (maybe No. 4 if Payton Pritchard starts, though it remains to be seen if this is the route the team is going to go). Though there will likely be times when he is tasked to be Boston's second option (probably in instances where George is inactive), fans should feel confident in White having a bounce-back year next season.
Derrick White should bounce back greatly for the Celtics next season
Last season was a brutal one for White, at least offensively. In 77 games (he was the second option in most of those games, with Tatum out for the majority of the season), the Colorado native averaged 16.5 points, 4.4 rebounds, 5.4 assists, 1.3 blocks, and 1.1 steals. His counting numbers were solid, but his efficiency was atrocious (39.4/32.7/90.2% shooting splits).
White also disappeared in the playoffs, averaging just 11.1 points, 3.3 rebounds, 3.1 assists, and 1.4 blocks on 32.1/27.3/84.6% shooting splits in seven games against the Philadelphia 76ers (and if you take away his mostly solid Game 7 performance, he averaged just 8.7 points, 2.8 rebounds, 3 assists, 1 steal, and 1.2 blocks on 30.9/25.6/88.9% shooting splits).
The main reason for White's struggles last season was that he was tasked with being a No. 2 option, which he had never consistently been before. White has always been a fantastic complementary piece (Boston doesn't win it all in 2024 without him being an ace defensively, a high-IQ playmaker/passer, and a solid scorer who hit open shots when defenses were more focused on the Jays, Kristaps Porzingis, Jrue Holiday, etc.); he just can't be a second star on a contending team.
And as it is, the Celtics don't need him to be one anymore.
The Celtics need Derrick White to just be Derrick White
Fortunately for him and the Celtics, the 32-year-old should mostly revert to his most successful role, and he should be in a good spot to help the team compete next season.
He won't have too much on his plate, and he should be able to complement Tatum and George well. Even though he's a year older, he is still incredible defensively (he finished sixth in Defensive Player of the Year voting last year and earned All-Defensive First Team honors for the first time), and he is still a very smart basketball player.
The Celtics should be getting closer to the same version of White who helped them win a championship just a couple of years ago because of his smaller role, and fans should feel confident that he will be better than he was last year.
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