Joe Mazzulla makes bold claim for slumping Celtics guard after Game 3 win

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Joe Mazzulla makes bold claim for slumping Celtics guard after Game 3 win

Souichi Terada · MassLive

Sat, Apr 25, 2026 ·

3 min read

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PHILADELPHIA — Derrick White continues to go through a cold stretch that dates back to the regular season. The misses continued to pile up once again in Game 3 against the 76ers on Friday at Xfinity Mobile Arena. But Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla stuck with White — and while he didn’t necessarily make shots, White came through for big plays.

White grabbed a pair of crucial offensive rebounds in crunch-time of the Celtics’ 108-100 victory Friday . Mazzulla leaned on White for the entire fourth quarter of the victory. It’s why Mazzulla made a bold claim when it comes to his starting guard.

“Anybody that ever doubts D-White, they don’t really care about winning,” Mazzulla said. “There’s a competitive confidence there. There’s a character piece there. He is not defined just by shot-making. He did a tremendous job. Those two rebounds were big-time rebounds, and he can impact winning in so many different ways. So I’m always going to double down on his competitive character, who he is.”

White is enduring the struggles of all these missed shots. He finished Game 3 with 11 points, four rebounds, two assists and three blocks in his 34 minutes. It was another slog of a game when it comes to his shooting, going 3-for-12 from the field and 1-for-8 on 3-pointers.

But Mazzulla has made it clear so many times: It’s not about just shots when it comes to White’s value. Mazzulla pointed out how White defended 54 pick-and-rolls in Game 1. White is well-respected around the league because of his consistent impact that goes beyond the box score. He showed bits of that Friday in Game 3.

“Obviously it’s frustrating,” White said. “When I’m out there, I gotta do everything to help us win games. Everybody here has got my back, so I got a lot of love and I’m thankful for the team and staff and everybody here. They’re staying with me through it all. It’s my job to go out there and help us win. If it’s not shooting, it’s gotta be everything else.”

The Celtics also leaned on their two stars to close the victory in Game 3. Jaylen Brown took over in the middle portions of the fourth quarter, putting the team on his back. Then Jayson Tatum hit a final few shots to slam the door on any chance of a Sixers comeback. It was a vintage finish from the most successful duo this decade.

That allows White to focus on the other parts of his game like he did Friday. The Celtics — to get to where they want to get to — will need White to knock down shots at some point like he has in previous seasons. The shooting slump has continued from the regular season. But for now, the C’s can rely on White to make the little plays that impact winning.

“I could say it 100 times: We need him, we need him, we need him,” Tatum said. “And it’s tough. As a basketball player, we’ve all been through it where you’re not hitting shots at the rate that you expect to or want to. Sometimes, you just don’t make them. But D-White is an unreal basketball player that still just has his imprint on the game. He makes plays on both ends of the floor, timely plays. But just never lose confidence in yourself.”

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