The Celtics are no stranger to having elite facilitating guards. You can go all the way back to Bob Cousy in the 50s and 60s, Dennis Johnson in the 80s, Rajon Rondo in the late 2000s and early 2010s, and now we might have to start talking about Derrick White in 2026.
White is averaging a career high 5.6 assists on the season, so he might not look like Rondo on the surface, but he is starting to turn it on lately. In his last 6 games, White has an absurd 42:8 assist to turnover ratio and is averaging 7.0 assists per game in this time period. This uptick in assists could be because of a switch in the starting lineup.
In the Celtics first game since the trade deadline against the Dallas Mavericks on February 3rd, Joe Mazzulla decided to move Payton Pritchard to the bench after Boston traded Anfernee Simons to the Chicago Bulls. Pritchard being a former 6th Man of the Year winner, naturally has flourished in his return to the role, averaging 22.5 points, 6.2 assists, and 3.5 rebounds, on 52% shooting from the field and 43% from three. This move to the bench has allowed Pritchard to not have to focus on being the primary point guard of the team and be able to hunt for his shot. This primary point guard spot has been bestowed upon Derrick White and it is safe to say that he is taking the reigns and running with it.
Derrick White is having a rough offensive season with one of his worst shooting seasons of his career at 39% shooting from the field and 33% shooting from three. In a bigger role, his shots are just not falling the way they were over the last few seasons. But now that he is the primary facilitator, White doesn’t have to focus on scoring more because his playmaking can do the work and he can focus his energy on continuing to be an elite defender.
A good example of White’s passing replacing his scoring is looking at the points created coming off his assists. In these last 6 games, White is averaging 16.3 points over this time but is shooting 36% from the field and 30% from three. However, in 4 of those 6 games, White has created 20+ points just off of his assists alone, with the most being 23 points against the Chicago Bulls on February 11th.
Let’s look at his most recent 8 assist performance against the Golden State Warriors on February 19th. He created 20 points off his assists, spreading the wealth to 7 different teammates. Most of his assists came during the Celtics runs in the first half where Boston scored 74 points. His biggest came in the fourth quarter however, threading the needle to Jaylen Brown for a tough fadeaway jumper to essentially ice the game after the Warriors rallied back in the game.
My favorite assists that White has been able to create involves the two-man game with the Celtics bigs. Whether its Luka Garza, Neemias Queta, or Nikola Vucevic, White has been able to find them easy buckets. He has been able to run the pick-and-roll to perfection, drawing multiple defenders him and finding his big center underneath the basket for an easy layup or dunk.
White’s ability to find three point shooters for catch and shoot threes and even on the fast break has been another highlight of his. All of his passes are landing right in the shooting pocket for guys like Sam Hauser, Payton Pritchard, and Baylor Scheierman to take advantage.
One thing that I do wonder is what happens to White’s ability to play-make when Jayson Tatum comes back. If he does come back this season, I expect White’s role not to change very much. He might have less ball handling responsibility with Tatum on the floor, but that could open him up to becoming the elite catch-and-shoot guy he was in the past. If not, there is no harm in having another ball handler and he could just continue what he is doing this season if Tatum comes back rusty in that area of play at all.
Derrick White is sneakily having the best season of his career when it comes to his defense and scoring, but his playmaking leap might be the most impressive part of his year that no one is talking about.
