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Why Derrick White ‘hates’ 3-point criticism surrounding Celtics
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- Why Derrick White ‘hates’ 3-point criticism surrounding Celtics
The post Why Derrick White 'hates' 3-point criticism surrounding Celtics appeared first on ClutchPoints .
Boston Celtics guard Derrick White is a pretty calm guy. He's never received a technical in his NBA career and manages to torch teams while remaining mild-mannered. However, the annoyance in his tone was clear when he was asked about one of the most controversial things the Celtics do: shooting 3-pointers.
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On the latest episode of White's podcast, aptly named the "White Noise Podcast," the talented two-way guard discussed the debate around Boston's offensive tendencies . And although White is generally relaxed, he couldn't help but voice his displeasure with those who criticize the Celtics' 3-point volume .
"I hate it," he said with a laugh. "I do hate it when people are like, 'You guys shoot too many threes.'"
Since Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla took over three years ago, Boston has attempted the most 3-pointers in the NBA. In fact, the Celtics even broke the single-season 3-point record in April.
And while this style of play upsets some fans, who might view the Celtics as "shot chuckers," White argues that they're myopic in their thinking.
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"Yeah, we do shoot a lot of threes," White admitted. "The volume is record-setting and we've never seen it before, but we had a team where spacing was everything for us. And when we created space and we drove, we attacked, we were creating those two-on-ones, and we were getting looks that every team in the NBA would take, especially from the shooters that we had shooting the shots."
Last season, every member of Boston's starting five was a 3-point threat. Whether it was White or Celtics star Jayson Tatum , nobody could be left alone. Even off the bench, the C's had reigning Sixth Man of the Year Payton Pritchard , sharp-shooter Sam Hauser , and veteran big Al Horford who's developed into a shooter late in his career.
Given this roster, it's no surprise the Celtics attempted so many triples. It worked out for them too, as they tried the most 3-pointers during the 2023-24 regular season before dominating the 2024 NBA Finals and raising a championship banner.
"Sometimes, yeah, there are bad shots, but there's bad shots at the hoop, too," White argued. "Nobody seems to care about those. There's bad shots at mid-range, there's bad shots from post-ups, like, there's bad shots everywhere. That's basketball. But it's not like every possession that we're getting a bad three. Yeah, it might be contested, and you usually can debate about that. But I think when we're playing our way, and we're playing high-level, we're just unselfish."
Heading into the 2025-26 season, the Celtics won't have the same team that put up all those triples. Tatum is out indefinitely with an Achilles injury, former starters Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday were traded , and Horford is expected to leave in free agency.
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Despite these significant changes, Boston's shooting habits probably aren't going away. Mazzulla, White, Pritchard, Hauser, and Celtics star Jaylen Brown are still around. Plus, the C's brought in ex-Portland Trail Blazer Anfernee Simons via the Holiday trade , and he's a prolific 3-point shooter.
So, to the dismay of some, "Mazzulla Ball" should continue into the 2025-26 season. And no matter what the outside noise sounds like, White is still going to launch from beyond the arc when the opportunity presents itself.
"I think one of the worst things you could do in basketball is pass up an open look," White asserted.
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