Derrick White was just 1-of-8 from three-point range in Game 3, but he has the support of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown.
The usually reliable Derrick White struggled to find his shot again on Friday night, going 3-of-12 from the floor and 1-for-8 from three-point range as the Boston Celtics beat the Philadelphia 76ers 108-100 in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference first round.
The C's now have a 2-1 series lead and will look to take total control on Sunday in Game 4, but they'll hope to have a better version of White in that contest.
The guard, who is one of the top two-way players in the league, is just 5-for-25 from three-point range in this series. But despite his struggles, he still has the support of his teammates.
Jayson Tatum said this after the game, per CLNS Celtics:
“Obviously we need him. I can say it 100 times, we need him, we need him, we need him. And it’s tough, as a basketball player, we’ve all been through it.”
“D. White is an unreal basketball player that still just has his imprint on the game.”
And Jaylen Brown added this:
“We trust Derrick in those moments and he usually always delivers. So as the playoffs get going he’s going to find his shot. The water will find its level.”
It's not surprising to hear the Celtics' leaders say this given how much experience they have with White, who arrived in Boston during the 2021-22 season.
About White
Now 31 years old, White is a nine-year veteran of the San Antonio Spurs and Celtics. Since coming to Boston, he's helped the Celtics reach the NBA Finals twice, winning it in 2023-24. White is one of the best defensive guards in the league while also providing solid offense. White finished sixth in the Defensive Player of the Year voting this season and he fell just two blocks shy of becoming the first player in NBA History to record 200 three-pointers made and 100 blocks recorded.
He averaged a career-high 16.5 ppg this season, helping alleviate the losses of Jrue Holliday, Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford and Tatum (mostly). However, in conjunction with this playoff struggles, he shot just 32.7 percent from three-point range, which is his lowest since 2021-22. He's a career 36.0 percent shooter from beyond the arc.
Onto Game 4
Game 4 will take place on Sunday night at 7 p.m. ET. It will air nationally on NBC and we still don't know if Joel Embiid will make his season debut yet. He had an emergency appendectomy on April 9.
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