White learned “simple works” as a rookie, and he’s kept that front of mind to help the Celtics reach the NBA Finals.
Derrick White has taken an incredible journey to reach the NBA Finals as a starter and key piece of the Boston Celtics.
He played three years at D-II University of Colorado-Colorado Springs before transferring to Boulder for his senior year, becoming an All-Pac-12 player in his lone season at the University of Colorado. That season turned him into NBA Draft prospect, where he got taken 29th overall by the San Antonio Spurs. White played 3-plus years for the Spurs and emerged as a solid starter before being traded at the deadline in 2022 to the Celtics, as they looked to bolster their backcourt rotation.
Since joining the Celtics, White has been a phenomenal fit as the point guard alongside stars Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown on the wing. White is a terrific defender and has steadily grown more comfortable in a supporting role offensively, both as a creator for others and a knockdown shooter, boasting a career-best 39.6 three-point percentage this season. White’s ascent is remarkable, but it is not a surprise that he’s continued to add to his game and became a winning player.
His journey has been defined by continued growth, from his time at Colorado Springs all the way to Boston, and it comes from an internal desire to always seek out ways to get better. Back in October of 2021, I sat down with White in San Antonio for a cover story that never came to fruition for a handful of reasons, one of which being his trade to the Celtics. Ahead of the NBA Finals, I went back to that conversation where we discussed the things he was focused on to grow as a player and a leader, to see how he got from being a hopeful breakout candidate to a key cog in a Finals team.
White was going into that season as the most tenured veteran on the Spurs, even as he was just entering his fifth year, and he was rapidly realizing the need to grow up as a leader while still figuring out his exact place in the league. He credited DeMar DeRozan and LaMarcus Aldridge as examples of the kind of quiet leadership he looked to emulate, as those two led by example. When it came time to speak up, they made sure to do it the right way.
