impressive! White’s career-highs in scoring and assists certainly make a strong case for his All-Star candidacy. Consistent performance can have a significant impact on player recognition.

This season, Derrick White is being considered for the first time in his career as an All-Star, but he believes his teammates are the ones who really helped him achieve new heights.

In an appearance on JJ Redick’s podcast, “The Old Man and the Three,” the Celtics guard specifically acknowledged Jrue Holiday for contributing to the development of his offensive game. When questioned about the summer transactions made by the Celtics, White said he expected the same thing of himself when they acquired Holiday on the eve of training camp as they did when they dealt Marcus Smart in June.

It was shocking when Smart was moved, according to White. “After that, I realized that, in contrast to previous year, there would be a lot more possibilities and I would need to step up with the ball in my hand. Everyone said, “We still need you to be aggressive and how we envisioned it before we got Jrue,” after we brought Jrue along.

White has lived up to Boston’s expectations by playing more aggressively offensively. His points (17) and assists (5.3) per game are at career highs, and his usage % of 19.5 is at its highest point since he joined the Celtics in the middle of the 2021–2022 season.

In the meanwhile, Holiday gave up. The lowest number of points he has scored since his rookie season is 12.9 per game. In addition, his 16.8 usage rate is the lowest of his career, and his 10.8 field goal attempts per game are also the fewest since his rookie season.

In circumstances where he believes he is shooting well, White stated he values Holiday’s sacrifice. In addition, he credited Kristaps Porzingis, Jayson Tatum, and Jaylen Brown for enabling him to shoot a career-high 49.4 percent from the field and 42.2 percent from beyond the arc.

In circumstances where he believes he is shooting well, White stated he values Holiday’s sacrifice. In addition, he credited Kristaps Porzingis, Jayson Tatum, and Jaylen Brown for enabling him to shoot a career-high 49.4 percent from the field and 42.2 percent from beyond the arc.

White remarked, “I think Jrue’s been the best teammate.” He’s happy to simply stay in the corner, spread the floor for us, and play whenever he needs to, if I’ve got it going on whatever. My game has been somewhat unlocked by having a player like that, who is ready to take risks and an All-Star in this league, to put my confidence in my ability to make a play.

It goes without saying that JT (Tatum) and JB (Brown) get a lot of attention when they play. Then, because KP (Porzingis) is receiving so much attention, I find the game to be somewhat simpler and I simply focus on making the proper move.

White also complimented Holiday’s play on defense, pointing out that the five-time All-NBA defensive team member has blended in perfectly with the Celtics’ defensive strategy.

Jrue is quite remarkable. “He’s one of my best teammates,” stated White. “He will go out there and do whatever the team wants him to do. His strength and physicality are unmatched in the NBA; we’ve seen him guard centers and point guards. It’s interesting to watch how guys respond, consistently throughout the night, when Jrue Holiday is there.

“He’s special on both ends of the floor, but 1-5, when we put him on someone, he doesn’t even blink defensively, it’s kind of crazy.”

This season, White and Holiday’s backcourt combination has likely been the finest guard defensive partnership in the NBA. Holiday, who is occasionally utilized as a roaming defensive player, averages 0.9 steals and 0.8 blocks a game. This season, White has played above his 6-foot-4 stature, earning 1.2 steals and blocking 1.3 shots per game.

White persisted in attributing his greater success this season to other people. He cited Porzingis and his increasing comfort level in the defensive scheme of the Boston Celtics, who switch on almost all screens, as the two main reasons why the team has the third-highest defensive rating in the league and Porzingis has been one of the greatest defensive guards this season.

Regarding the defensive scheme of the Celtics, White stated, “It’s definitely confusing.” “The year I was traded, I was like, ‘What’s going on?'” I haven’t done it this way my entire career.

“However, now that I’ve been here for a few years, it’s kind of common that we do different things and the focus isn’t on the center. The wonderful thing about having KP is that he is adaptable and is capable of numerous defensive feats for which he is likely underappreciated.

White continued to point at Porzingis as a reason why the Celtics also have the second-best offensive rating in the league. The big man is scoring 20.6 points per game while shooting a career-best 53.5 percent from the field and boasts the league’s 12th-best true shooting percentage (65.8).

Even though Porzingis has given Boston mismatches near the rim, the Celtics have still relied on 3-point shooting for their offensive success. The Celtics are shooting a league-high 42.8 3-point attempts per game while their 37.4 3-point percentage is 11th in the league.

But Porzings’s, Tatum’s, and Brown’s performance around the basket, in White’s opinion, goes hand in hand with their 3-point shooting and all-around offensive effectiveness.

“I think the great thing about the team is you never really know who’s going to play, every single night,” stated White. It goes without saying that JT or JB will receive their touches and opportunities. However, they’re doing a fantastic job of drawing a lot of attention and reaching out to us. That seems to be most of our 3s, in my opinion. Even while there are stepback and one-on-one threes that occur during the game, I believe that the bulk of our threes and our looks come from skilled shooters.

We can throw it to KP and he’s virtually unguardable if they switch, which is a newfound offensive weapon we have,” White continued. “So, keep your space and your flexibility to play near the rim. This year, JT and JB have posted more, which has given them more opportunities to get various looks.

Honestly, it looks awful when the threes miss. However, there are now several ways for us to score.