The Boston Celtics have made some significant moves this NBA offseason hoping to get over the hump and bring another Larry O’Brien Trophy to Beantown. They are hopeful that Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday will be enough as the co-stars to Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
It certainly wasn’t cheap to acquire those two players. Marcus Smart and Robert Williams III have been key core pieces that were traded away as part of those deals for years. Malcolm Brogdon was dealt along with Williams for Holiday, while Grant Williams ended up with the Dallas Mavericks as part of a sign-and-trade.
That is a lot of depth and rotation minutes that the Celtics will replace during the 2023-24 season. One of the players who will be counted on to play a significant role again is versatile guard Derrick White.
He looks like he will be the starting point guard once again, sharing the backcourt with Brown. White is a major part of the plan in Boston, as he was the third-best player throughout the postseason behind Tatum and Brown.
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Derrick White & Boston Celtics Updates
For that reason, many people were surprised that he was left off ESPN’s Top 100 Player Rankings list. Tim Bontemps is an analyst who believes White should have made the cut.
“Derrick White should be on it. A terrific two-way guard who is among the best defensive guards in the league, White should be comfortably inside the top 100. There’s a reason Boston has invested so much in White,” Bontemps wrote.
A strong case certainly could be made for him. Last season, his first full one in Boston, he played in all 82 regular season games, starting 70 of them. He averaged 12.4 points, 3.9 assists and 3.6 rebounds in 28.3 minutes per game.
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Derrick White & Boston Celtics Updates
In the postseason, his production was just as steady. White saw a few minutes more, averaging 29.7, while putting up 13.4 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game. In the opinion of Kevin Pelton of ESPN, White was the biggest omission from this year’s list.
That is certainly a bold statement that he is closer to the top 50 than being outside the top 100, but it speaks volumes to how big of a snub he is. The question is, however, if you are adding White on, who comes off?
NBA NEWS & RUMORS: Derrick White & Boston Celtics Updates
A few guards right inside the top 100 are Collin Sexton of the Utah Jazz, Russell Westbrook of the Los Angeles Clippers, Mike Conley of the Minnesota Timberwolves, and New York Knicks duo Immanuel Quickley and Josh Hart. All five are ranked between 98 and 91, and a strong argument can be made for White to be in over them.
