Celts get Derrick White for Richardson, Langford, #1, 2028 pick swap

[todd_days_41]

Richardson's presence and Langford's defense would've been nice tonight.

Yeah, we only won by 23 - really needed an injury-prone scrub and an end of bench guard to be the cherry on top

Definitely would have preferred those two to the guy who led the team in +/- tonight.   

Ha, yeah - White is usually on the floor when we go on big runs. Not coincidentally.

This voodoo osmosis “glue guy” take remains the only soft defense for how badly Stevens overpaid for White.

Only if you don't appreciate upgrading passing and defence

He has not upgraded either. These are just excuses.

Lol, sure he hasn't

Your dedication (or obsession) is certainly something. Not grounded in reality, but certainly something.

Should say the same for you. Just because you wanted to defend the trade when it first happened doesn’t mean you can’t now admit we overpaid.

For context, maybe check how Spurs fans feel about the deal. Hint: they’re very pleased.

They're also sitting at home awaiting the draft lottery to start while this Celtics team is still playing. 

I'm not sure anyone on this board really gives two [dang]s on how Spurs fans are feeling right now.

What’s that got to do with Brick White? Nothing, unless you think he’s some sort of lucky charm.

It's the cringeworthy attempts like these, without acknowledging the provable ways in which White is superior to Richardson, that make people laugh at your takes.

Right. Provable. Like “the Cs tend to go on runs when White’s on the floor” provable?

C’mon. Admit the “provable” elements — like scoring, 4th quarter scoring, shooting percentage, falling assist rate (sub 2 in the playoffs for a PG), and 4th quarter assist rate are not in White’s favor, or perhaps you’re not a great judge of humor — or skill.

Furthermore, I think the notion that questioning White and / or the deal to acquire him is somehow sacrilege because the Cs are still a very good team is ridiculous. This “how dare you” mindset reflects a bit of a low standard.

Put down the Pom-Poms for a minute. White is by far our worst rotation player — it’s not really all that close. It’s beyond reasonable to wonder whether giving up picks on top of Richardson was a shrewd idea — both for the now, and for the future. Not sure why it gets this groups blood up quite so much.

Mostly, I think guys are just annoyed that I’m questioning anything at all while the Cs are on a playoff run. I seriously doubt you or others actually believe White is worth what he’s paid, or what the Ca paid for him.

Nothing about White — provable or not — has won the Cs a single game since he arrived. They’d be in the precisely the same place they are today if the Spurs deal had never happened.

[pokeKingCurtis]

Yea and fournier is basically scoring like Jeff Green was with us

20 points one game, 4 the next

[ozgod]

I can't judge this trade from just a few months of games. The Celtics have him for years. Let's see how people feel a year from now. Let's not forget most on this board, including posters currently hating this deal, we're ready to give up on players like Timelord and Grant Williams, until they weren't.

Patience.

For right now White's shooting isn't costing them team much and everything else he does makes the team better.

It's also worth taking into account that Josh is an expiring after 2022-23, while White is under control till 2024-25. Under control means you can keep him or flip him for someone else later on. He's on a tradeable contract at $16m a year. That was apparently one of the attractions for Brad when trading for him.

[Celtics2021]

This thread is going nowhere.  Those of us who liked the trade said that the advanced stats, specifically those that favor some sort of on-off measurement, liked Derrick White a lot, despite his mediocre counting and shooting stats.  Those stats have continued to like White as a Celtic, and the Celtics play well when he’s on the court.  They also showed that the Celtics did not play all that well with Richardson.

Those of us who didn’t like the trade pointed to his bad shooting stats.  Those have continued, as did Richardson’s shooting in San Antonio.  The one thing that has changed is that the Spurs play very well with Richardson on the court. 

Accordingly, it’s possible this trade was better for the Spurs, because they got someone who offered similar production in addition to a draft pick. At the same time, the Celtics got a player who helps them more than the players they gave up (anyone still gnashing their teeth about Langford, who played two games for the Spurs and was then hurt again is just being absurd), is under contract longer, and actually saved them money next year (White + minimum is less than Richardson + Langford), which is really important for a team at or above the tax line.

So perhaps this was, heaven forbid, a win-win trade?

[jambr380]

I'm just a little confused. I know people who liked the trade still like the trade - and that is their prerogative - but I'm not sure how people can watch Derek White right now (again, the right now part) and think, yeah, this is great. People are pretending that JRich was some kind-of atrocious defender and bad teammate, when neither is true at all. I completely understand that it would have taken a willingness for him to buy into the idea of simple ball-movement, but that's just coaching.

I am not saying that White can't one day be good for us, but unfortunately that day has not yet come. Hopefully he's had a solid few days, talked to somebody about the pressures he's facing, and comes out refreshed/confident. But as it stands now, as far as this playoff run goes, it's hard to argue that JRich would have been worse than what we are seeing from White. And, no, it's not just about shooting.

[Sophomore]

Yes, he needs to hit shots. He did in game 1, but not in game 2. It’s strange to me that some people keep insisting he does nothing else good. He clearly does. There is video.

https://www.celticsblog.com/2022/5/6/23059906/contributing-beyond-the-box-score-derrick-whites-game-2-boston-celtics-nba-playoffs

https://www.bostonsportsjournal.com/2022/05/06/how-derrick-white-helps-the-celtics-even-when-his-shot-isnt-falling

[celts55]

I’ll just add that while I haven’t been wowed by White, the Celtics continue to win and play great defense with him being in the 8 man rotation. He was a plus 22 last game without scoring a point.
I would very much love to see him hit a shot, especially since the Bucks plan seems to be to let him shoot, but I think (hope) that’s going to happen. He’s never been a great shooter, but certainly better than he’s been. And I would much appreciate if he didn’t step out of bounds once or twice a game.
That being said, I don’t really think the Celtics gave up that much for him. I liked Richardson, but they’s a reason they could pick him up fairly cheap. He was coming off a few not so great years. Better scorer, maybe even defender, not a passer. Romeo, unfortunately it doesn’t look like he will ever be healthy. 25 pick? And I’m not worried about a swap 6 years down the road. First, I hope the Celtics would have a better record, and second, I might be dead. Who knows.

I guess it works for both teams, and I personally think in the long term, it will work out well for the Celtics

[td450]

The big test for this team will be its ability to handle the ball under pressure and not force Tatum and Brown to do all the work. We don't that have much in the way of elite ball handling.

To me, this all works if he can cleanly handle the ball and get us into our offense under a lot of pressure for the rest of the playoffs. His other contributions will be there. Shooting is just icing on the cake.

[Cman]

This thread is going nowhere.  Those of us who liked the trade said that the advanced stats, specifically those that favor some sort of on-off measurement, liked Derrick White a lot, despite his mediocre counting and shooting stats.  Those stats have continued to like White as a Celtic, and the Celtics play well when he’s on the court.  They also showed that the Celtics did not play all that well with Richardson.

Those of us who didn’t like the trade pointed to his bad shooting stats.  Those have continued, as did Richardson’s shooting in San Antonio.  The one thing that has changed is that the Spurs play very well with Richardson on the court. 

Accordingly, it’s possible this trade was better for the Spurs, because they got someone who offered similar production in addition to a draft pick. At the same time, the Celtics got a player who helps them more than the players they gave up (anyone still gnashing their teeth about Langford, who played two games for the Spurs and was then hurt again is just being absurd), is under contract longer, and actually saved them money next year (White + minimum is less than Richardson + Langford), which is really important for a team at or above the tax line.

So perhaps this was, heaven forbid, a win-win trade?

seems like a fair assessment to me.

[ScoobyDoo]

Basketball intelligence is often underrated. Derek Fisher’s value wasn’t his shooting (he was better than White right now), or his passing, or defense - not one thing stood out dramatically.

But he tended to always be making the right play - the right pass, the key box out, the right defensive rotation, etc.

That’s not measured in the box score. Then, what’s his vibe with the team? Does he need the ball (Richardson could sit on the ball and was a slow decision maker). White does need the ball, doesn’t demand it, he understands the team hierarchy and strategy, buys into and executes it efficiently every night.

He hasn’t wowed anyone on the offensive shooting side of the ball (hopefully that changes) but he tends to make all the right plays nearly all the time - super valuable.

[gouki88]

Josh Richardson could absolutely, unequivocally never play the defence White played tonight.

[todd_days_41]

Josh Richardson could absolutely, unequivocally never play the defence White played tonight.

Prove it.

[gouki88]

Josh Richardson could absolutely, unequivocally never play the defence White played tonight.

Prove it.

It's difficult because Richardson is in Cancun at the moment, but he's never held the opposition to 0-12 as the primary defender in the playoffs.

[todd_days_41]

Josh Richardson could absolutely, unequivocally never play the defence White played tonight.

Prove it.

It's difficult because Richardson is in Cancun at the moment, but he's never held the opposition to 0-12 as the primary defender in the playoffs.

That was a joke.

That said, Al Horford never scored 30 in a playoff game before either. Hard to say what Richardson could do after he got traded to a bad team despite playing well in green.

I will give you a TP, however, for taking a victory lap the second you read my 0-for-12 post in the game thread because White didn’t suck for once.

I think he even made a 3! Brad, get SAS on the phone — let’s send ‘em some more picks.

[Sophomore]

Whatever else he did, White was solid on offense last game and this game. 4-6 from the field, created a few of his own shots and got to the line, scored 11 points. Brought the ball up and kept it moving. If that’s an average game for him going forward we are eating.

Add: the defense, as others said, also very very good. Nobody scored on him, he drew a charge and made a key block.