What Brad Stevens must do to get his deserving first-time Boston Celtics All-Star candidate to Indianapolis
Boston Celtics President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens must pick up the phone and be persuasive enough to get deserving potential first-time All-Star Derrick White to the mid-February classic in Indianapolis; this, at least, according to NBC Sports Boston's Chris Forsberg.
"In order to get White to Indianapolis, the Celtics likely will need to keep this campaign going for the next few weeks," Forsberg wrote. "Indiana native Brad Stevens might need to get on the phone and remind some of his former coaching brethren just how the team feels about White’s impact on winning this season."
As Forsberg points out, White outpaces several of the Eastern Conference's, and even the league as a whole, in several statistical categories.
"White deserves the fanfare," Forsberg prefaced before saying, "His on/off splits continue to be outrageous. Boston is outscoring opponents by 15 points per 100 possessions in White’s 945 minutes of floor time. That’s the best net rating in the NBA among all players averaging more than 24 minutes per game. The players immediately behind him on that list: Joel Embiid, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Kristaps Porzingis, Tyrese Maxey, and Nikola Jokic. What’s more, Boston’s net rating drops to a team-worst +3.0 during his 611 minutes on the bench."
Boston Celtics unlikely to send entire starting lineup to 2024 NBA All-Star Game
The Cs having multiple All-Stars is likely, if not overwhelmingly, but having all five starters, as Forsberg points out, is unlikely.
"The Celtics, overflowing with talent, are lobbying for their entire starting five to make the All-Star game this year," he prefaced before saying, "That's not happening.'
If anyone on the Cs needs to make the exhibition, though, it's Jaylen Brown, according to some.
"It’s Brown who needs an All-Star selection the most," CelticsBlog's Adam Taylor wrote. "His supermax contract hasn’t even kicked in yet, and that price tag is already being used as a barometer to measure his performances. If he were to miss out on the All-Star team, the criticism would hit new and unwarranted heights."
Brown and Jayson Tatum are the only likely All-Stars if you ask this writer, but there's still time between now and Indianapolis's shot at hosting the Association's annual weekend-long celebration of the NBA's best for Kristaps Porzingis to play his way into consideration -- and for White to solidify his long-shot case to make the game.