In the Boston Celtics’ Saturday night win over the Phoenix Suns, Derrick White dominated the first quarter. The offense ran through him, and he finished the frame with six points, two rebounds, and four assists on 3-of-5 shooting.
By halftime, his points total was up to 10 and he was a perfect 5-for-5 from inside the three-point arc. He turned the ball over just one time and through three quarters, he dished out eight assists.
Through the first half of Boston’s loss to the Denver Nuggets, White had tallied seven points, four rebounds, and two assists on 3-of-6 shooting. In the third, he added three more dimes.
Against the Cleveland Cavaliers, a game the Celtics should have closed out, White put up three points, six rebounds, and seven assists on 1-of-4 shooting through the first three quarters.
In the three fourth quarters of those games combined, White totaled zero points, three rebounds, and two assists on 0-for-2 shooting from the floor.
White’s recent shooting slump has slightly lessened his impact on offense, but his pick-n-roll game has been one of the most effective methods of scoring for the Celtics this season. Yet in three straight fourth quarters of NBA-defined “clutch” games, Boston went away from him.
Why?
Against the Suns, Jayson Tatum did a solid job of organizing things on offense. And against the Nuggets, the Celtics did a lot of their scoring in transition while Denver was scrambling.
But when it came down to crunch time – the real must-score minutes of the game – why was White relegated to off-ball play?
For the final five minutes of Boston’s loss to Denver, nearly all of White’s touches came in transition. He brought the ball up the court, gave it up, and became a catch-and-shoot option on the perimeter.
Against Cleveland and Phoenix, White was a bit more involved, but it came nowhere close to his early-game control against the Suns.
White’s chemistry with Luke Kornet, Kristaps Porzingis, and Tatum is unmatched, and when they play at his tempo, it almost exclusively results in beautiful basketball.
End-of-game scenarios are far different from what’s going on in the first quarter. Defenses tighten up, the game slows down, and defensive pressure hits a new level. But White has been one of the most composed players on the team all season.
In the clutch this year, White has shot 14-of-27 (51.9%) from the field and 10-of-21 (47.6%) from distance. He’s scored 48 points, grabbed 16 rebounds, dished out eight assists, nabbed one steal, and blocked five shots, all while committing just one turnover.
Does he get the benefit of teams pressuring Tatum, Porzingis, and Jaylen Brown? Absolutely. But Boston should be using that to their advantage rather than using him as a shooter.
Let White run the show more often. Obviously, Tatum, Brown, and Porzingis will still get their fair share of late-game touches, but using them as decoys would allow White to thrive, and in turn, maybe the Celtics’ closing-time offense could look a bit more in control.
