The Boston Celtics have a lot of star players, but perhaps none of them are as big as Derrick White. Around this time last year, the Celtics inked a deal with White for a four-year, $126 million contract extension. But, despite this new deal and White being one of the most integral players to the Celtics, there’s still a lot of trade talk surrounding White possibly ending up somewhere else.
One of the places that some have predicted White could end up is the Golden State Warriors. It makes sense, and the need is there, but it would be a huge shakeup to see the Celtics part with White and send him to California.
So, will it happen? One NBA insider is shedding light on the idea of White getting traded to the Warriors and lays out exactly what he thinks will happen.
Derrick White and a Possible Trade
It would hurt to see White get traded away. He seems like such a huge part of the entire Celtics franchise at this point. Brad Botkin of CBS Sports makes some bold predictions in a feature published on Monday, June 30, and one of them involves White.
When discussing the future of the Warriors, he explains that it makes the most sense to see White traded there, but that doesn’t mean it will happen. Instead, he thinks White will stay with the Celtics.
“The Warriors are going to try to put Jonathan Kuminga into a sign and trade that brings back a serious player,” he notes in the feature. “Derrick White makes a ton of sense, but the Celtics are reportedly going to demand an extremely aggressive package along the lines of the five first-round picks the Knicks paid for Mikal Bridges or Orlando’s four-pick package for Desmond Bane. ”
He adds that while White is “better than both those guys” when talking about a championship, and the Warriors could actually “pay it with a Kuminga-based package,” he really doesn’t believe that will happen.
“When it’s all said and done, the two most likely Kuminga outcomes this summer are the Warriors bringing him back and maybe trying to move him at the trade deadline, or making a less-splashy sign-and-trade,” he concludes.
The Celtics Seem In on Derrick White
So, he thinks the Warriors will look elsewhere to add some star power to their roster. Where will they go? He sees a “transaction that brings Andrew Wiggins back to the Bay.”
“Wiggins was a critical part of Golden State’s 2022 championship and is perfectly suited and willing to play the role that Kuminga doesn’t want,” he notes. “White would be a blockbuster get, but something smaller is more likely and Wiggins still gives Golden State a third legit scorer and another defender.”
So, for now, Celtics enthusiasts can rest a little easier knowing that this NBA insider doesn’t think the Celtics’ star guard will go to the Warriors. Of course, this is the NBA, and anything can happen at any point, but as the offseason progresses, it seems less and less likely.
