Celtics
White discussed his newly-repaired teeth, Olympic gold medal, getting his hat knocked off in a dustup, and more.
Derrick White. Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff
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Derrick White had a lot to smile about during his Tuesday press conference at Celtics Media Day.
The veteran guard captured his first NBA championship this summer, won a gold medal with Team USA at the Olympics, and signed a four-year $126 million extension with the Celtics this offseason.
He also spent some time getting his teeth fixed after having his face smashed into the floor during the NBA Finals. His chipped tooth look that was a part of his title celebration is gone.
“My teeth are getting better,” White said. “I had to go to the dentist on Friday and had three root canals, so that was fun. I think I’ve got to go one more time to the dentist but the teeth are good.”
White said getting the extension done and having long-term stability in Boston feels “amazing.”
“I’ve been saying since I’ve been here that I didn’t want to go nowhere else,” White said. “I love playing for this organization, with this team, this coaching staff, and for these fans. I was super excited for it to get done, especially early in the summer so I didn’t have to answer all the questions about it. I love being here and me and my family are super excited to be here for a while.”
It was an exhilarating summer for White that also included some controversy. He replaced Kawhi Leonard on the Olympic team and was picked over teammate Jaylen Brown, who is the reigning NBA Finals MVP.
Brown wasn’t happy about getting passed over, and there has been speculation about whether the situation could affect the team’s chemistry. White said there haven’t been any issues to address.
“There’s no elephants in here. That was never an issue,” White said. “That never needed to be talked about. Everybody had a good summer and is looking forward to the season.”
White, who played college basketball at Colorado, returned to his alma mater to watch the Buffaloes play football last month and video surfaced of a fan appearing to hit White in the face.
The blow didn’t connect, White said, but he shouldn’t have been in the situation.
“Obviously the Colorado situation is unfortunate,” White said. “Never thought I’d be in that situation, honestly. I didn’t actually get hit, he just hit my hat off. But, shouldn’t have been there, it’s unfortunate and just moving on.”
White said he was excited to see the Celtics sign his former Spurs teammate Lonnie Walker IV during the offseason.
“It’s good to see Lonnie again. That’s my guy. He got drafted a year after me,” White said. “We were just a couple of young guys trying to figure it out learning under [Gregg Popovich]. He started in Austin his rookie year like I did, so it’s kind of like similar things. It’s always good to see him, good guy, good energy around the gym and is going to do a lot of special things on the court.”
White said adding an Olympic gold medal to his title collection made a great summer even better.
“It was amazing just getting that phone call,” White said. “I was just at home chilling and relaxing and just getting that call and being a part of that team with legends of the game and people that are the best that the game has right now.”
“I was just thankful to be a part of that team and go out there and learn as much and just try to help us win the gold which was obviously a special moment, so it was a good summer and I enjoyed it.”
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Publish date : 2024-09-24 07:57:00
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