Impact 126 million fat! The Green Army 4-for-1 picks up the leakage of the ace is really fragrant, and the Spurs give Tatum a big gift and gets a perfect match

Li Xilin's basketball lore

2024-06-19 13:48Posted in Beijing Sports Creators

Derrick White paid a big price for this championship, knocking out half of his front tooth in the fifth game of the finals. As long as you smile, you can see the notches in the front teeth, which seriously affects your appearance. However, Derek White has also been handsomely rewarded. The 29-year-old won the championship and has been so brave in his quest to win the championship that he is eligible to sign a four-year, $126 million contract extension with the Green Army this summer.

Impact 126 million fat! The Green Army 4-for-1 picks up the leakage of the ace is really fragrant, and the Spurs give Tatum a big gift and gets a perfect match

For the Celtics, White is one of the indispensable players in the team, and the team should try to avoid him entering the free agent market, otherwise he will be coaxed by other teams, after all, he is in his playing year, and he has both offense and defense, plus the blessing of a championship aura. For such a player to enter the free agent market, it is almost certain that a playoff-caliber team will offer a salary cap or even promise more balls.

In contrast, White's offensive power for the Celtics is behind Tatum, Jaylen Brown, Porzingis, and Holiday is between the two. Holiday signed a four-year, $135 million contract extension with the Green Army before the playoffs began. White's next contract won't be much worse than Holiday because he's younger than Holiday after all.

"It's such a blessing to be part of this team, they have made me a better player, they have made me a better person, and I love everything about the city of Boston." White said.

White was fortunate throughout his NBA career, as he was selected by the Spurs with the 29th pick in the 2017 draft, and under Popovich's tutelage, he gradually grew up to become the Spurs' starting point guard.

In the middle of the 2021-22 season, the Celtics poached White through a trade to bolster the bench. White became a backup guard under Udoka, who helped the Celtics reach the Finals.

When White played for the Spurs, it was in the spurs' trough and the team was an underdog. While the Celtics are a championship contender, White has changed the environment, and he quickly adapted to the Green Army system. In other words, he is a combination of offense and defense, and he actually fits into any system.

White is 1.93 meters tall, moderately tall as a point guard, he can shoot suddenly, has excellent defensive skills, can attack with the ball, and can also play off-ball offense, which is indeed a good puzzle for a strong team. He is not suitable to be the core, but he is very suitable to be the helper of the giants.

In his second season with the Celtics, the Celtics coach was replaced by Mazzulla, and White's basketball career took a step further as he became a starter for the championship-contending team.

"I love Mazzulla. After I had that year, he took over as coach and he said, 'You know what? I'm going to start you. This is something I didn't expect. He said, 'I believe in you, I trust you.'" It gave me confidence. From that moment on, I felt like it changed my entire career. I'm willing to do anything for him. White said.

It has to be said that Mazzulla has a set of training players, and he can make the whole team happy to fight for him. In the 2022-23 season, the Celtics reached the Eastern Conference Finals but failed to reach the Finals. In the summer of 2023, the Green Army will have a big change, and the addition of Porzingis and Holiday will make the squad structure of this team more complete.

White had a career-best performance this season, averaging 15.2 points, 4.2 rebounds, 5.2 assists, 1.0 steals and 1.2 blocks per game while shooting 46.1% from the field, 39.6% from three-point range, 90.1% from the free throw line, and 2.7 three-pointers per game. White's blocks, steals, free throw percentage and three-point shooting averages are all career-highs.

In the playoffs, White has been in excellent form in every round and is a reliable helper next to the double tanhua, playing the Heat in the first round, he averaged 22.4 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game. In the second round against the Cavaliers, he averaged 14.0 points, 4.0 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game. In the Eastern Conference finals against the Pacers, White averaged 16.8 points, 4.8 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game.

In the Finals, White averaged 13.8 points, 4.8 rebounds, 2.6 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.0 blocks per game, and he averaged 3.4 three-pointers per game while shooting 39.5% from three-point range. The backcourt duo of White and Holiday have super defensive ability, and both have been named to the 2023-24 defensive second team. They caused a lot of trouble for Irving and Doncic. Holiday defends Irving and Brown defends Doncic, but White also shares a lot of the task of defending the Eastern European pair.

"It's so unreal. Until now, I have not fully accepted this fact. I have a special group of teammates, a special coaching team, and I'm grateful to be a part of the team. Yes, that's so untrue. I'm just trying to enjoy the moment and not get too excited. White said. This championship has added an important piece to White's basketball career.

He may be able to climb to higher goals, can he become an All-Star next?

White's tenacity is also admirable, he knocked out half of his front teeth in the fifth game of the finals, but said after the game: "I am willing to lose all my teeth in order to win the championship." After winning the championship, White's market soared, and his salary is $18.86 million this season and $20.07 million in 2024-25. Under the collective bargaining agreement, White is eligible to sign a four-year, $126 million early contract extension beginning July 7. The Green Army needs to prepare a 100 million yuan contract for him.

The Green paid a big price to get White in 2022, with trade chips including Josh Richardson, Langford (2019 No. 14 pick), a 2022 first-round pick and a 2028 first-round pick swap. But as it turned out, the Celtics made a lot of money on that deal at the beginning.

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