When I told Derrick White he was averaging a block a game again after not recording one for the first two games of the season, his response was very clear:
“That’s what we do.”
The Celtics guard has set a goal of averaging a block a night while seeking his first All-Star appearance in his eighth season.
But let’s return to the beginning.
High School
White attended Legend High School, a new high school in Parker, Colorado. He was part of the first graduating class, and because of this, he played with eleven other freshmen on the basketball team during his freshman year. They won one game.
In his senior season, White averaged 17 points, three rebounds, three assists and two steals per game. He stood 5-foot-10 during the season.
White received no scholarships from any D-I schools. At his high school graduation, only two months before his 18th birthday, he was barely six feet tall.
White finally received interest from a four-year institution: Johnson & Wales, a school in Denver best known for its renowned culinary arts program.
The man who had interest? Jeff Culver, the head coach of the basketball team and athletic director at the school.
“What I really appreciated about his game is he made a lot of winning plays,” Culver told me about what he saw in White during the recruiting process. “High basketball IQ with a high ceiling, local kid, checked all the boxes.”
Culver was then hired as the head coach at the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs (UCCS), a Division II school. He offered White a $3,000 walk-on scholarship with an opportunity to receive a full scholarship his sophomore year.
White accepted.
College
UCCS
Culver was extremely high on White. Although he “definitely did not know” that White would be an NBA player, he remarked, “We felt strongly that he would be able to compete at a high level.”
White was still viewed as too thin his freshman year. So, Culver opted to redshirt him.
“I was also coming into a new situation with a whole new roster and staff. And it took me a little time to really know what we had with some of the returners. And back then, the NCAA didn’t allow freshmen to play without it counting as a season.”
However, White’s redshirt did not last very long. White was thrust into the lineup after some injuries and academic issues with upperclassmen.
“We just threw him into the starting lineup,” Culver remarked, “If we’re going to play him, then we are actually going to use him.”
Although White could use a benefit year, Culver mentioned he was the team’s most consistent guard.
White averaged 17 points his freshman year and was named the 2013 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Freshman of the Year.
After that, the NBA started to notice the guard.
“Year two, we had a bunch of NBA front offices reach out to us,” Culver said.
His third season at UCCS was his best one yet. White averaged 25 points on the year and scored 50 points in his second-to-last game while grabbing 14 rebounds and adding eight assists. He had gotten too good for D-II.
Colorado
That’s when the University of Colorado (Yes, the Deion Sanders school) called. Culver recalled being nervous. He was worried that it was a big risk then and did not want it to impact his draft status.
“He was on the radar of NBA front offices. What if he goes there and is averaging six and four? What does that do to his draft status?”
Though it took some time, Culver came around to the idea.
“They had him graded out, and really thought that he would be one of their top guys. When I heard that, that set my mind that he’s a bit more certain, we didn’t want him to leave, but more than anything, we just wanted it to work out for him in the long run.”
Colorado was right in its grading of White. White averaged 18 points while adding a steal and a block, earning him First-Team All-Pac 12 and Pac-12 All-Defense.
After his lone season in Boulder, White declared for the NBA Draft. The San Antonio Spurs selected him with the 29th overall pick in Round 1.
The San Antonio Spurs
White played in only 17 games his rookie year, spending most of his time in the G League with the Austin Spurs. He scored 35 points in Game 1 of the G League Finals, en route to the Spurs’ victory.
White leaped his sophomore year with the Spurs, averaging 9.9 points per game. Across the following three and a half seasons, he averaged 15.5 points a night. In 2020, he signed a four-year, $73 million contract with the team.
Everything changed at the 2022 trade deadline.
The Boston Celtics
In a deal involving Josh Richardson and Romeo Langford, White was sent to the Boston Celtics. It was a new start for White, and he was joining a Celtics team that had won eight of its last nine games. In his first game, White hit three three-pointers and put up 15 points en route to a Celtics victory over the Denver Nuggets.
In his debut, White would make his first NBA Finals that season, scoring 21 points and hitting five three-pointers off the bench. The Celtics would fall to the Golden State Warriors in six games, and White’s first season as a Celtic was complete.
The best was yet to come.
White was thrust into the Celtics starting lineup after an injury to center Robert Williams to start the season. White had arguably the best season of his career, improving his three-point percentage by 9% and achieving a career-high in that number at 38%. White brought in Eastern Conference Player of the Week honors in February after averaging 24 points. He also received All-Defensive Second Team honors for the first time.
No Hair Era
In 2024, White made a big decision.
He went completely bald.
White had the best season of his career. White averaged a career-high in points, rebounds, assists, steals, blocks, and three-point percentage. He was named to the All-Defensive Second Team for the second straight year.
Oh, and he won the NBA Finals, defeating the Dallas Mavericks in five games.
White also had an eventful summer, winning a Gold Medal with Team USA at the Paris Olympics and signing a four-year, $125.9 million contract with the Celtics.
White has gotten off to an extremely hot start in his eighth season. White averages 17 points per game, which would be his career-high by two points. He also shoots 39% from three on nine attempts, adds a steal, and blocks a night.
After not recording a block in his first two games of the season, White rebounded quickly by getting three blocks in his third game.
“That’s what we do.”
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