Derrick White's Best Lineups Ran Through a Player Boston…

By the Celtics Nightly Desk · Tuesday, September 15

Derrick White averaged 16.5 points, 5.4 assists and a 119.3 offensive rating across 77 games last season, shooting 32.7 percent on 8.3 three-point attempts a night. Every one of his highest-scoring lineups included Jaylen Brown, who is no longer on the roster.

Derrick White of the Celtics — Derrick White. Photo: Boston Celtics, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

His shot diet expanded last season, but efficiency stayed modest.

White attempted 8.3 threes a night and made 32.7 percent of them. His overall field goal percentage settled at 39.4, his true shooting at 52.9, and his usage rose to 21.6 percent. He still added 1.1 steals and 1.3 blocks a night against 1.7 turnovers — the defensive half of his game held steady even as the shot diet grew heavier. Reasonable volume, modest efficiency, for a team now leaning on him to help create offense.

His most effective units last season all ran through a player who is gone.

Boston's top three White lineups by point differential last season each paired him with Jaylen Brown. The Brown-White-Queta-Pritchard-Hauser group logged 200 minutes at a plus-17.9 margin, the Brown-White-Queta-Pritchard-González group added another 67 minutes at plus-14.8, and a five-man unit with both Brown and Tatum reached plus-6.1 over 153 minutes. Brown is now with Philadelphia, traded for Paul George. White has no comparable sample next to George yet; training camp is where that chemistry starts.

His contract climbs for two more seasons before a decision point.

White is owed $30.3 million this season, $32.6 million in 2027-28, and holds a $34.8 million player option the year after. That ranks third on the roster behind Tatum and George, on a team already above the $200.4 million tax threshold at $201.4 million total. It is a fair price for a top-three contributor, and one more reason Boston's margin for further additions stays thin.

He arrives at camp with nothing to monitor.

White is not on the injury report, a contrast to Tatum, who is still working back from a knee injury as camp opens. For a guard at 32, entering his ninth season, staying off that list is its own quiet contribution. What he needs to be this season is what his numbers already suggest: Boston's steadiest connective piece, filling in for the wing who shared the floor with him most last season.

What is Derrick White's role for the Celtics this season?

He is Boston's third scoring option and primary connective guard, tasked with replicating the lineup chemistry he had with Jaylen Brown now that Paul George has taken Brown's roster spot.

How much is Derrick White being paid?

He is set to earn $30.3 million in 2026-27, rising to $32.6 million in 2027-28, with a $34.8 million player option for 2028-29.

By the Celtics Nightly Desk, written from the club's data and the reports on file, with every name and number checked against them. How the desks work.