Before the Boston Celtics exchanged Derrick White in February, they had already begun to change their season. You’ve probably heard the story: they were 18-21 after taking the lead at Madison Square Garden in early January, then going 33-10 to the end of the road, criticizing their new coach and skepticism about their two stars sounds extremely silly.
It wasn’t until they got the Whites, however, that they became the Celtics. They have become a team that can shut down opponents even when the defender of the year is not on the court. They became a team that could play teams without weak units in defense and be more than the sum of their units in attack. The white trade ended Boston.
For months, this group reminded me of the Toronto Raptors of 2019, who launched five All-Defense types and were gifted with talent, but took the time to mix their superstar’s individual gifts into a fully cohesive offensive system. If these Celtics were these Raptors, then White would be their Mark Gasol, even though he is seven years younger than Gasol and they play in different positions. Gasol was the addition to the trading deadline that put this team above the top, and although he was never the best player on the floor, he was the man who kept everyone connected.
To extend this analogy: When Gasol, a reluctant but more than capable 3-point shooter, shoots from outside, as he did in a few key moments of the playoffs, it can be demoralizing for the opponent. Every team Toronto faced in the playoffs relied on him to turn down 3s or miss them. Fifteen games in the Boston playoffs, White shot 10-for-48 (20.8 percent) behind the line for 3 points, most of which were wide open and in rhythm. At numerous press conferences, coach Ime Udoka stressed that White contributes in a positive way, regardless of whether his jumper falls or not, that all the Celtics understand how he starts moving their ball, increasing their pace, making good decisions and influencing defensive play. .
Udoka was there. The Whites don’t have to shoot well to help Boston win games. But it certainly doesn’t hurt when he does. In White’s last three games, he has scored 11 to 18 of 3 points, including 5 to 8 in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Thursday.
“Obviously you have to choose where to pay attention,” said Stephen Curry, after his Golden State Warriors lost 120-108 on their home court. Curry attributed the Celtics to Jaylan Brown and Jason Tatum for their game, and then pointed out White and Al Horford for their shots. “These two guys are key. We hope they don’t stay that hot, but we also need to do something about it, and we need to understand that by watching a movie tomorrow and Saturday.”
White is both the recipient and the engine of Boston’s offensive. To call it just a connector is to sell it short; he can initiate an attack on the half-court, generate easy rests on the break, score cuts and, as the Warriors realized, take advantage of catch and shoot opportunities. However, he transformed the Celtics by consistently making sound, simple games, often after one of the stars caused the first domino to fall, and by ensuring that Udoka should never compromise one end of the floor for the other. The last part distinguishes Boston from every team it has faced on the way to the finals, and perhaps from the Golden State.
“It fits in as soon as it arrives in Boston and it was like an automatic,” Brown said. – So we are lucky to have it.
“Derrick is such a smart basketball player, he can fit anywhere,” Tatum said. “I’m glad we caught him.”
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On Thursday, White completed his first two attempts for 3 points. The Warriors did not expel him from the line as expected when the ball found him in the perimeter. Except for his latest work, an absurd, late bomb over Curry, everyone looked clean.
“I missed my first two, but they felt great, so I just stayed confident,” White said. “Teammates and coaches have always told me to stay confident. It’s good to see that [first] one comes down and just gets up from there. “
White finished with 21 points and three assists and was the highest +25 in 32 minutes.
“He’s definitely a player who can raise his level at any time,” Brown said. “And I knew that before when I played with him in [Team] USA, but even learned more from him in the US. He is just a footballer. Some people get up for a moment and have the ability to just beat the scouting report and just be able to complete the hoop. “
Before hitting any of his 3s, he smashed the Golden State area with a floater and set Horford for a short jump, two games that won’t make a single highlight drum:
In defense, he spent much of the night chasing Curry and Jordan Poole. In a representative possession, in terms of the effort White had to expend, he defended Curry from the ball, was displaced for a moment, sprinted around the screen, made Curry put the ball on the floor, chased him from behind and smashed the glass.
Putting White on Curry allowed the Celtics to put Marcus Smart on Draymond Green when they were both on the court together, effectively taking Curry Green’s pick-and-roll off the table. Things went so well without Smart in the fourth quarter that Udoka didn’t even return DPOY until 3:47. Boston made a historic run and held the Warriors to 13 points in the final frame before a pointless 3 in the garbage time.
After his third shot behind the arc, White made Poole bite a fake pump, then crossed the baseline, lifted Andrew Wiggins into the air and won a pair of free throws.
He created a corner 3 for Brown (assistant!), 3 over the break for Horford (assistant hockey!) And an extremely open immediately 3 for Peyton Pritchard (a powerful assistant for hockey!), Putting pressure on the rim:
The Celtics switched more during the game, which, combined with their shooting without lighting, made it difficult for Golden State to detect any semblance of flow in the fourth quarter. Up six on the stretch, White took his position against Wiggins by ticking the clock. Wiggins danced with the ball, but instead of trying to shoot over White, he decided that the Warriors were better, as Green took 3. While she jingled from the edge, White boxed the taller, bouncing Wiggins and could pull over – foul from behind:
These little battles between Wiggins and White did not stand out at the moment, but it was only because White won them. Some teams prefer not to change, fearing that opponents will find discrepancies late in the hour and punish the guards on the boards. Boston changed more than any team in the league during the regular season because its identity is based on the fact that everyone can behave alone.
Udoka called it “rewarding” to see players like White and Horford step up when Tatum had a hard night of shooting, adding that the Celtics were proud not to rely on one man to attack. The way Horford talks about the trust they have in White and how much they love his energy seems to take great joy in seeing him go on this hot series.
If Boston wins three more games, White will join Gasol, Rashid Wallace and Clyde Drexler in the shortlist of the best mid-season acquisitions in NBA history, if he hasn’t already. Asked specifically what White brought to the table in the fourth quarter of Game 1, Udoka said, “A little of everything.”
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