The winds may be starting to blow in a different direction in the Eastern Conference. All season long, the Detroit Pistons have reigned atop the Eastern Conference. But the Boston Celtics are closing in on them with speed and force. On Sunday, the Celtics took down another East contender, the Cleveland Cavaliers, 109-98 to move to 43-21 on the season and just 2.5 games back of the Pistons in the standings.
The Celtics may be peaking at the right time, and what makes this season so masterful for everyone involved in the franchise is that they managed to excel and hold down the fort even amid Jayson Tatum's injury. Now that Tatum is back, the Celtics might be the favorite to come out of the Eastern Conference.
But for as much fanfare Tatum and Jaylen Brown draw for their consistent excellence, the Celtics won't be able to go anywhere without their beating heart in Derrick White, who drew such lofty praise from Cavs head coach Kenny Atkinson after their tussle on Sunday.
“[He's] a top five player in the league,” Atkinson said of White, via Celtics on CLNS on X. “That's how we treat him. He really disrupts you defensively, he's an elite rim protector. Probably the best guard rim protector in the league. So just take all those things and put it in there and with the shooting, you got a great player.”
Kenny Atkinson on why he thinks Derrick White is a Top 5 player in the NBA:
"What probably people aren't measuring is his defensive impact … analytically I think it's probably proven in various places that he is that player and that's how we treat him."
"He really disrupts… https://t.co/uKwr1QwmVt pic.twitter.com/GDXsc5dXvr
— Celtics on CLNS (@CelticsCLNS) March 8, 2026
Celtics' Derrick White is a coach's dream
Many fans were stunned when White was getting minutes even over Tatum for Team USA in the 2024 Paris Olympics. But it made sense. He can fit into every lineup. He can defend multiple positions, and he relishes doing the dirty work. And beyond that, he's also one of the best volume three-point marksmen in the NBA.
“What probably people aren't measuring is his defensive impact … analytically I think it's probably proven in various places that he is that player and that's how we treat him,” Atkinson added.
