Celtics Rumors: Derrick White Agrees to $126 Contract Extension After NBA Title Win

Derrick White and the Boston Celtics have agreed to a four-year, $125.9 million contract extension following their NBA championship last month, according to ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski.

ESPN’s Bobby Marks provided a year-by-year breakdown of the deal:

White had one year remaining on his deal worth $19.5 million.

The news comes after Adam Himmelsbach of the Boston Globe reported on Oct. 15 that White and the Celtics had held discussions about a contract extension ahead of the Oct. 23 deadline.

“I love it here. It’s been great being here, being a Celtic,” White told reporters on Oct. 17. “That’ll never change whether I sign before the season or not. If it happens, great, if not, I’m still excited for the season to be here.”

However, the two sides were unable to come to terms on a deal prior to that deadline, which caused some concern in Celtics nation despite the veteran being under contract through 2024-25.

Hope that White would extend his stay in Boston was renewed after NBA reporter Marc Stein reported on June 11 that he was expected to seek a contract extension with Boston this summer.

Brian Robb of MassLive added on June 26 that the Celtics made it a “priority” to extend White’s contract this summer.

The Celtics acquired White in a February 2022 trade with the San Antonio Spurs in exchange for Romeo Langford, Josh Richardson and a protected 2022 first-round draft pick.

White appeared in 26 games for the Celtics during the 2021-22 season and went on to have a solid 2022-23 campaign, which was his first full year with the franchise.

The soon-to-be 30-year-old became a key figure in the starting lineup alongside former Celtic Marcus Smart, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. He averaged 12.4 points, 3.6 rebounds and 3.9 assists in 82 games (70 starts) while shooting 46.2 percent from the floor and 38.1 percent from deep.

Following the departure of Smart to the Memphis Grizzlies in the three-team trade that landed Boston Kristaps Porziņģis, White was initially expected to take over the starting point guard role.

However, the Celtics then acquired Jrue Holiday in a deal with the Portland Trail Blazers after the Milwaukee Bucks offloaded him in the Damian Lillard trade and moved White to the starting shooting guard role.

White put together the most productive season of his career in 2023-24, averaging 15.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and 5.2 assists in 73 games while shooting 46.1 percent from the floor and 39.6 percent from deep.

He went on to put together an electric postseason for Boston, averaging 16.7 points, 4.3 rebounds, 4.1 assists and 1.2 blocks as the Celtics beat the Dallas Mavericks to win their first NBA title since 2008.

Now that White is remaining in Boston for the foreseeable future, he figures to be a key piece in the team’s rotation for years to come as the C’s aim to repeat as champions next year.