3 stats that could hold the Boston Celtics back from winning 2022 NBA title

Boston Celtics stat No. 3) Derrick White’s 39.7 percent shooting clip

By all accounts, Derrick White has the makings of being the perfect sixth man option for this Boston Celtics team.

From his defensive instincts and high basketball IQ to his distribution skills, on paper, the 27-year-old is a fantastic backup to, and backcourt partner with Marcus Smart in Ime Udoka’s scheme.

Unfortunately, the one thing that’s been keeping this “on paper” moniker in tow is his ridiculously poor shooting stroke from the field.

Throughout his tenure with the C’s, we find the guard boasting solid averages of 10.8 points, 3.6 assists, 3.3 rebounds, and just shy of both a steal and a block per game. Sadly, however, on top of all this, he holds a measly shooting clip of just 39.7 percent from the field overall, a career-low for the fifth-year pro.

What makes his lowly shooting stroke even worse for Boston, however, is the fact that he finds himself putting up 8.9 attempts per game, 4.3 of which are coming from behind the arc where he’s converting on a foul 28.6 percent of his shots (another career-low).

Both of these attempts-per-game averages rank in as the fourth-most on the team.

Considering just how much White is used within Udoka’s scheme, as we’ve stated in the past when discussing this very dilemma, his inefficient shooting stroke is something that could wind up holding the Celtics back in the long run.

The sad truth is, it’s not like the veteran is going about and taking bad shots.

Instead, he’s actually finding himself getting quality looks more often than not, be it when he’s got a step on his defender on his way to the paint, hoisting floaters from about eight to ten feet out, or in wide-open sets from 3-point range.

If Derrick White can somehow tap into something similar to his 2019-20 form where he was shooting 45.8 percent from the floor and 36.6 percent from deep, then there would be no question in our minds that he’d become the perfect sixth-man option for the Boston Celtics, and would also likely help improve problematic stat number two on this list in the process.

As we make our way towards the playoffs, should he not improve upon his 39.7 percent shooting clip, it could very well prove to be a major reason for why the C’s could see an early-round exit.