In his latest Celtics Mailbag, MassLive’s Brian Robb suggested the Boston Celtics could end up regretting not making the decision to bench Marcus Smart in favor of red-hot reserve Derrick White come playoff time.
Robb was answering a question from a reader who is convinced White is the third-best player on the roster, and thus, deserves to get the starting nod at the 1 over the struggling Smart — who has shot at a 36% clip from the field, 32% clip from beyond the arc, and owns a 3.7/2.7 assist-to-turnover ratio since the team-wide post-All-Star break malaise began.
“Having Smart play his way through these struggles is one to go about this but it’s fair to wonder given this team’s crunch time woes whether White deserves more of a look over Smart,” Robb prefaced before saying, “I wouldn’t count on it happening given the amount of faith Mazzulla has shown in Smart this year but it’s going to be a second guess that could become magnified as we get into the postseason.”
Derrick White is playing like one of the best supporting role players in the league for the Boston Celtics
White has truly been a godsend for the Boston Celtics in 2022-23. The 28-year-old has a +10 net rating this year, which per Robb, ranks first on the Celtics and sixth in the entire Association among players averaging 25+ minutes per game. White also ranks third in field goal percentage amongst the team’s non-bigs, second in 3-point shooting amongst the team’s guards, and fourth in points per game overall.
As the sixth highest-paid player on the roster, White provides some of the best value on the roster. With eight 20-point games on the season, White has breakout potential any given game.
Who knows what he can provide in extended minutes. Perhaps the team should explore that option if Smart can’t get his shot back, or at least consider staggering Al Horford and Robert Williams III’s minutes to open up a spot for White in the starting lineup.