The Boston Celtics have some tough decisions to make during the offseason, and the Golden State Warriors could benefit from it. Ultimately, the Celtics have to weigh whether they want to break up their current core when Jayson Tatum is out for much of the campaign or try to continue what they have. It might not be the best idea, given the team still has an opportunity to win a championship. However, it isn’t something the Warriors can worry about. If they make somebody like Derrick White available, they need to be interested in him.
And according to a recent prediction from Yahoo’s Kevin O’Connor, that’s exactly what will happen. He predicted the Warriors would be interested in him this summer if he were on the trade market.
“The Warriors might go for Derrick White this offseason,” O’Connor said during a new episode of “The Kevin O’Connor Show.”
“That’s the type of player they want to go for. That’s intriguing to me because the Warriors, in all likelihood, (will) continue with this Jimmy Butler, Stephen Curry, Draymond Green core.”
How would Derrick White Impact Warriors?
Trading for White would be a great opportunity for the Golden State Warriors to extend their title window. There have been times throughout his career when he looks to be one of the most valuable players on the Boston Celtics roster, if not the most valuable. His ability to defend next to Stephen Curry would be intriguing, and he also shoots the three-point shot at an above-average clip, shooting 38.4% from beyond the arc on 9.1 attempts per game this past season.
The question, however, would be whether the Celtics would be willing to move on from him, and if the Warriors would be willing to move on from some of their first-round picks, which they have multiple love.
“How desperate are they going to get, though? Because why would the Celtics trade Derrick White, who’s only going to be 31, and still feels like he’s getting better every year?
“The Warriors will have the ability to trade their first-rounders in ’26, ’28, and ’32, plus swaps in ’27, ’29, and ’31.”
Does Trading Derrick White Make Sense for Celtics?
The Boston Celtics trading White wouldn’t make much sense. Not only is he one of the better role players in the NBA, but he’s also on a rather friendly contract. Making $118 million over the next four years, in the current CBA, that’s an excellent deal for a player of his value.
The Golden State Warriors would love to take on that contract, but even if the Celtics believe they won’t compete next year with Tatum out for much of the campaign, if not all of it, why not keep him around for the next three seasons?
“I’ve talked about how depressing trading Derrick White would be for Boston, and the sort of a dilemma they face in terms of, ‘How much of a reset do we really want to have and who we want to be back here when Tatum comes back?” Zach Lowe said. “Who has trade value in the interim and where (does) Derrick White fit in that conversation?”
There’s a lot to consider here for both sides, but if the Warriors could grab him, the idea makes perfect sense for them.
