The Celtics are the 2024 NBA champs, and while Wyc Grousbeck and team ownership have much to celebrate, sometime in the coming weeks the hangover will kick in: They’re gonna need to pay this bunch.
That means, first, a max extension worth $315 million for Jayson Tatum. But, second, it should also mean a new contract for guard Derrick White, who has established himself as one of the best two-way guards in the league and is eligible to make $125 million on a four-year extension he could sign this offseason.
That is on top of extensions already given to Jaylen Brown ($300 million over five years), Kristaps Porzingis (two years, $60 million) and, most significant for White, to Jrue Holiday (four years, $135 million).
White wants to stay put. The Celtics want him to stay put, after he averaged 15.2 points, 5.2 assists and 4.2 rebounds, shooting 38.9% from the 3-point line. He has one more year at $20 million next season, and could tack on the four-year deal on top of that. And around the league, the expectation is that he will do just that.
Derrick White Coming off Breakout Year
Here’s what one Eastern Conference GM told Heavy Sports: “They’re going to have to give him the max that they can. The way he played, defensively, offensively, all of it, I don’t think they want to let him get to free agency (in 2025). They could maybe do some things at the back end of the deal, in terms of options or guaranteed money, but the framework is probably already there.
“Jrue Holiday brings some experience and all of that, but Derrick White is just as valuable to what they do, so you’ve got to pay him what you’re paying Jrue.”
Indeed, White is coming off a breakout year, but he is not a budding young star. He turns 30 next month. But again, the Celtics guaranteed Holiday’s money through four years, and he will be 37 at the end of the deal, getting $37.2 million. The fact that White will be nearly 35 at the end of a four-year extension shouldn’t deter Boston.
It could be White, in fact, who decides not to re-up. NBA free-agency rules limit what he can sign for this year, but he would have no limitations next summer.
“If he repeated what he did this year, he could get a very, very big contract next year in free agency,” one Western Conference executive said. “Something like Fred VanVleet’s deal, where it is shorter years but big-time up-front money.”
VanVleet got a three-year, $128 million contract from the Rockets, though Houston has a team option on the third year.
Celtics’ Brad Stevens Eager to Re-Sign White
Celtics boss Brad Stevens has not been shy about noting that the team wants to keep White. With good reason. It’s easy to forget that Stevens suffered some slings and arrows when he traded for White from San Antonio in 2022. The Celtics gave up Josh Richardson, who had been playing just about as well as White, plus former first-rounder Romeo Langford and their 2022 first-round pick.
Boston also added a potential pick swap in 2028.
It’s an easy win for Stevens and the Celtics in hindsight, but at the time, many felt Stevens had given up too much. Stevens has a little extra incentive to keep White aboard.
“I can’t talk about much with things that we’re not allowed to discuss until July 1, but Derrick’s had an amazing year,” Stevens said in April. “Derrick is a huge, huge part of our team and we want him around for as long as we can keep him around.”
Sean Deveney is a veteran sports reporter covering the NBA, NFL and MLB for Heavy.com. He has written for Heavy since 2019 and has more than two decades of experience covering the NBA, including 17 years as the lead NBA reporter for the Sporting News. Deveney is the author of 7 nonfiction books, including "Fun City," "Before Wrigley became Wrigley," and "Facing Michael Jordan." More about Sean Deveney
