Is Derrick White turning into Boston’s “King of the Fourth”?

Derrick White has been the last word utility man since coming to Boston in 2022. He has the flexibility to fill in any hole, and calling him a “position participant” someway looks as if probably the most apt descriptor of what he does for the Celtics, but an insult to his capacity. Whereas he will not be a celebrity, there’s nothing he can’t do on the courtroom. Possibly probably the most underrated side of his sport is his capacity to raise his play when it comes time to shut out video games.

Followers could keep in mind his notorious buzzer-beating tip-in in Sport 6 of the Jap Convention Finals towards the Miami Warmth again in 2023. That put-back got here with mere milliseconds left on the clock earlier than the discharge.

Whereas Boston’s playoff run finally fell quick after Jayson Tatum sprained his ankle within the first minutes of Sport 7, Derrick’s game-winner nonetheless lives within the minds of Celtics and Warmth followers alike. When the Celtics made it again to the playoffs this previous season, White averaged 16.7 factors, 4.1 assists, 4.3 rebounds, 0.9 steals, and 1.2 blocks with a forty five.2 FG% and 40.4 3P%. In that run, he made a number of defining performs which put Boston on the trail to victory.

The season is younger, however Derrick is already off to a stellar begin. By means of seventeen video games, he’s averaging 18.4 factors, 4.3 assists, 4.7 rebounds, 0.8 steals, and 1.2 blocks whereas taking pictures 47% from the ground and 40.6% from 3-point vary. The factors, rebounds, and 3P% are all profession highs (aside from his rookie yr the place he shot 61.5% from three on simply 13 whole makes an attempt).

The taking pictures splits are already nice, however they get much more spectacular once we check out the 4^th quarter. He’s taking pictures a wild 53.7 FG% with a 50.0 3P% and 87.5 FT%, with just one missed free throw to date. It’s not on low quantity both, with 3.4 FGA and a pair of.1 3PA per sport.

Boston discovered itself in a decent competitors in all of their final 4 video games, beating out Toronto, Cleveland, Washington, and Minnesota by a mixed 20 factors, twelve of these factors got here from the matchup with the Wizards the place they inexplicably repeatedly deliberately fouled the Celtics, permitting them to run up the rating in what was in any other case a 5-point sport with round 30 seconds left.

In these 4 video games, Derrick had a mixed 30 4^th quarter factors on 11/19 taking pictures. If we take away the Toronto sport from the combo, his solely sub-50% taking pictures efficiency at 2/6, his FG% jumps from 57.8% to 69.2%, which, in case you didn’t know, is insanely environment friendly.

If we have a look at Boston’s three losses, these coming towards Atlanta, Golden State, and Indiana, the effectivity someway will get even higher. In these three video games, Derrick put up a mixed 28 factors on 10/13 taking pictures, an unreal 76.9%. Of these 10 makes, 8 of them had been three-pointers. Within the Atlanta and Indiana video games, he linked on each single considered one of his mixed 7 pictures.

Derrick has been considered one of Boston’s most dependable gamers when it’s time to get a bucket, and the very best half about it’s that he nonetheless does a lot extra on the courtroom each time he’s on the market. He makes all the appropriate performs on offense, and he’s a defensive menace, too. Earlier this season, in an in depth sport with Detroit, Derrick helped over from the nook on what appeared like a wide-open dunk for Cade Cunningham and managed to fulfill him on the apex to disclaim the basket which might have tied the sport with underneath a minute to play. The Celtics would go on to win that sport by simply 6 factors.

When it comes all the way down to it, White is at all times able to ship. In 4^th quarters, he’s third on the group in PPG, trailing solely Jaylen and Jayson, Derrick averaging 5.1 and the opposite two at 6.9 and 5.5 respectively. He’s additionally fourth in FG%, solely behind Luke Kornet, Neemias Queta, and Jrue Vacation whereas taking pictures the next quantity than all three. By way of 3P%, he leads the group at 50%. We received’t tolerate any Isaiah Thomas erasure in my family, however Derrick could also be bringing again the crown as Boston’s King of the Fourth.