Any time you can be mentioned in the same sentence as Larry Bird as a Boston Celtics player, you must be doing something pretty special.
And that can be said of the all-around performances Derrick White is giving the Celtics this season.
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White is having a career year. He's averaging 15.4 points, 5.2 assists and 4.3 rebounds per game, while shooting 46.4 percent from the field and a career-high 40.2 percent from 3-point range. His 190 made 3-pointers are 41 more than his previous career high set last season and recently earned him a $500,000 contract bonus.
White's defense has been exceptional, too, and he actually ranks second among all guards in blocks with 86. He's likely to make one of the league's All-Defensive teams for the second straight season.
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Put simply, the veteran point guard is impacting the game in a hugely positive way at both ends of the floor. And as a result, he's on pace to join Larry Bird as just the second player in Celtics history ever to average at least 15 points, five assists, one steal and one block in a season, per NBC Sports Boston's Celtics statistician Dick Lipe.
Bird did it twice, including his second of three consecutive NBA MVP seasons in 1984-85.
Acquiring White from the San Antonio Spurs during the 2021-22 season has been a home run trade for the Celtics so far. He is a major reason why Boston has so much skill and versatility on both ends of the floor.
If the Celtics go on to claim Banner 18 this spring, you can bet White will play a pivotal role in that success.