Boston Celtics guard Derrick White is going to need to swing by his dentist one of these days — but probably not before he's done celebrating his team's banner No. 18.
White had a painful moment during Game 5 of the 2024 NBA Finals against the Dallas Mavericks at home Monday night when he appeared to smash his face on the court while going after a loose ball with Mavs big man Dereck Lively II. Fortunately for White and the Celtics, he did not seem to suffer a serious injury, as he was able to stay in the game and finish it. However, he lost a part of his teeth which has become a talk of the town for a bit on social media.
Fans react to Derrick White's chipped tooth during Game 5 of Celtics-Mavericks
White's tooth and his toughness that allowed him to stay in the game has Celtics and NBA fans bringing up all sorts of reactions during the game. He even got mocked by his own teammate, Jaylen Brown.
More reactions:
“Boston Dentist watching right now”
“Stayed in the game. Champion mentality.”
“Looking kind of “possessed” 😳😂”
“Still better than Anthony Davis’”
“This is why you wear a mouth guard. To lesson the impact. It’s nothing like tooth pain. Going to feel that tonight after the adrenaline wears off.”
“That’s ok. He can get it fixed after he win the Ship and sign that big contract”
“As soon as the Celtics got Derrick White I raved about the culture fit because he’s a hockey player at point guard. He’s genuineuly willing to get his face smashed in to accomplish the team goal. May be missing a tooth, didn’t miss a play. What a dude.”
“That’s a Championchip tooth”
“Collateral damage to win that championship”
White has a year left on his current contract, but the Celtics could soon reward him with a sweet contract extension. He is due to earn $20.071 million in the 2024-25 NBA season before hitting the free-agent market next year, though, it's hard to imagine Boston not wanting to retain him for years to come given the way he contributed to the team's success in this campaign.
White arrived in Boston via a trade from the San Antonio Spurs back in 2022 in exchange for “Josh Richardson, 2022 1st round pick [Top-4 protected, 2023 Top-4 protected, conveys to 2023 2nd-round pick], Romeo Langford and 2028 1st round pick [Top-1 protected, SAS right to swap],” per Spotrac.
Boston dominates Mavericks with gentleman's sweep
White and the Celtics absolutely crushed a listless Dallas squad in Game 5 to the tune of a 106-88 score. Boston failed to complete a sweep in the 2024 NBA Finals, as it let Luka Doncic and company come away with a win in Game 4 in Dallas, but the Celtics were not about to be denied of championship No. 18 in front of their home crowd at TD Garden on Monday. Jayson Tatum led Boston in Game 5 with 31 points on 11/24 shooting from the field. He also had 11 assists and eight rebounds while going a perfect 8/8 from the foul line in 38 minutes of action.
That was not enough, though, for Tatum to win the 2024 NBA Finals Most Valuable Player award, as the honor went to his teammate, Jaylen Brown, who had 21 points, eight boards, and six dimes with two steals in Game 5. As for White, he played 38 minutes in the title-clinching game, scoring 14 points and pulling down eight rebounds while playing solid defense for the Celtics, who won their first title since 2008.
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