Fans of the Boston Celtics were understandably nonplussed earlier in the NBA’s 2023-24 season when a certain prominent NBA news outlet left starting Celtics floor general Derrick White off their top 100 NBA players list for the season despite his excellent play to close out the team’s deep run in the 2023 playoffs.
Since then, the Colorado native has been elevating his game even further, with both stat heads and the eye test singing the praises of White’s game alongside new Boston combo guard Jrue Holiday in the backcourt dubbed the “Stock Exchange” by White’s father, Richard. Rumbles have started to percolate suggesting that the Colorado alum is even worthy of an All-Star nod this season.
Count Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley among them, who writes on how White is on the radar of other league analysts in such a regard.
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“When ESPN’s Kevin Pelton recently cobbled together his way-too-early All-Star rosters, only a single Celtic made the official cut: perennial MVP candidate Jayson Tatum,” writes Buckley. “Two other Bostonians were mentioned among Pelton’s ‘other contenders,’ though.”
“One was Porzingis. The other wasn’t Jaylen Brown, a recent recipient of the richest contract in NBA history. It also wasn’t Holiday, who has previously booked a pair of All-Star trips.”
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“Rather, it was the subtly spectacular Derrick White, who has made an All-Star-level impact, even if he hasn’t quite produced traditional All-Star-level stats,” continues the B/R analyst.
“He may not have the loudest volume numbers (15.5 points and 5.1 assists), but he’s been exceptionally efficient (48.2/42.5/87.9 shooting slash) and downright dominant on defense. White is regarded as a 94th percentile stopper by Dunks & Threes’ defensive estimated plus/minus metric. For context, that puts White on the same tier as Giannis Antetokounmpo, a former Defensive Player of the Year, and OG Anunoby, an All-Defensive second-teamer last season.”
“Look beyond White’s surface stats and toward his impact on winning at both ends, and it’s clear he’s more than just a contender for an All-Star spot—he’s deserving of a career-first selection,” adds Buckley.
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Now, deserving and receiving are two entirely different things, and likely why Pelton had White in the mix but not projected to land the nod to represent the East in the 2024 All-Star game.
White would need the fan vote to push him into the starters (very unlikely), or have his peers, the media, and the coaches on his side for a backup spot on the ’24 All-Star roster to go his way.
Not out of the question given White seems to be held in high regard around the league, but a campaign for the plus/minus king certainly is warranted by what we’ve seen from him so far this season.
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