Derrick White lost his joy. His Celtics teammates helped him find it.

BOSTON — On a cold Wednesday night time in Toronto, Derrick White realized he merely didn’t really feel like himself.

That very same night time, the Celtics suffered what was maybe their worst lack of the season, a 110-97 defeat by the hands of the Raptors — one of many league’s weakest groups on the time.

White had one among his worst video games as a Celtic, ending with 6 factors on 2-9 taking pictures and a team-worst +/- of -29 in an uncharacteristically low 21 minutes on the ground.

White wasn’t used to struggling; he had been on a steep upward trajectory since Joe Mazzulla took over as coach, between his All-Star caliber 2023-24 season and the following NBA championship.

However, in his eighth season as a professional, one thing simply felt totally different.

“I used to be going into the world, and simply didn’t have the identical quantity of pleasure,” he admitted at observe on Saturday.

The usually jubilant aspect of Derrick White is palpable. It’s some of the noticeable elements of the Celtics behind the scenes.

Only for enjoyable, White concludes each observe with a prolonged trick shot competitors with the assistant coaches. He’s continually cracking jokes and teasing his teammates. When he’s actually feeling it, after hitting a deep one from behind the arc, he playfully searches his pocket for an additional three-pointer.

Although he’s normally fairly reserved on the podium, White is oftentimes the chattiest within the locker room.

Final 12 months, in the course of the NBA Finals, a number of Celtics gamers instructed CelticsBlog he was unequivocally one of many funniest gamers on the crew; the extra time you spend across the 30-year-old guard, the extra noticeable his upbeat persona is.

“That’s after I’m at my finest — after I’m having enjoyable and my power is excessive,” White stated.

For a second, nevertheless, it simply wasn’t there.

Derrick White’s struggles coincided with the Celtics’ slide

From December seventh to January twenty third, the Celtics recorded a 12-9 file, one among their worst stretches in recent times.

In that span, White averaged 13.9 factors and shot 40.9% from the sector, considerably beneath his pre-slump averages of 18.4 factors on 47.8% taking pictures.

These numbers don’t essentially leap out. Each NBA participant goes by way of a phase of the season that’s much less environment friendly than their norm.

Nonetheless, they have been taking a toll.

After a Dec. 29 loss to the Pacers, White was candid in regards to the crew’s struggles, going as far as to say it was essentially the most troublesome stint of his Celtics tenure.

“I feel this is likely to be the hardest stretch that I’ve been on since I’ve been right here with the Celtics,” he stated.

It was a few issues . With Kristaps Porzingis again within the lineup, White’s shot makes an attempt have been down. And, even when he had attractiveness, he “shot like crap,” he proclaimed. On the similar time, he started making some uncharacteristic errors on the court docket that had nothing to do with taking pictures, like fouling three-point shooters on quite a few events.

“Throughout that point after I wasn’t taking part in effectively, it form of simply all mixed,” White stated. “In all probability why I wasn’t taking part in effectively.”

Jayson Tatum, one among White’s closest pals on the crew, remembers these couple of weeks vividly.

“I keep in mind that stretch — and everyone felt for him as a result of he’s such an important individual and, clearly, an important participant,” Tatum stated. “You see firsthand how laborious guys work, and the way dangerous they need issues to go the correct manner.”

Jaylen Brown, one of many Celtics’ most vocal leaders, had a transparent message for White on the time: concentrate on the issues that you would be able to management.

“The one factor that we’d like for you, regardless, is to play protection,” Brown stated, recalling his message to his teammate throughout that stretch.

Derrick White’s pleasure is again, and the Celtics are successful once more

White’s taking pictures numbers are manner again up. This month, he’s averaging 16.8 factors and taking pictures 50% from the sector, together with 45.5% from three.

The Celtics’ success — so carefully correlated with White’s particular person efficiency — has adopted. They’ve received 10 of the final 11 video games the 6’4 guard has performed, and have improved to a 41-16 file.

On Sunday in opposition to the Knicks, White performed with the identical free-flowing confidence that has made him some of the pivotal gamers on the Celtics since he was acquired in 2022.

Within the fourth quarter, with New York crawling again into the sport after trailing by as many as 27, he went an ideal 3-3 from three, matching every of the Knicks’ large pictures with ones of his personal.

Kristaps Porzingis grinned when requested about White’s efficiency.

“One factor I like about him, he all the time hits large pictures,” Porzingis stated. “He has this in his blood.”

Mazzulla agrees.

“When he’s at his finest, he performs carefree, he makes large pictures like he did tonight, and he simply defends at a brilliant excessive stage,” Mazzulla stated.

Joe Mazzulla believes White’s struggles have been inevitable

Joe Mazzulla has maintained he’s glad that the Celtics as a crew went by way of a harder stretch earlier within the season. He holds that very same constructive perspective for the struggles of his star level guard.

“It’s a must to undergo that. I’m glad he went by way of it,” Mazzulla stated. “It was vital for his progress. It was vital for us to see him wrestle — as a result of it exhibits how a lot we’d like him, and it’s vital for him to struggle for that confidence.”

Mazzulla additionally defined why he thinks White went by way of the stretch that he did.

“As you change into a greater participant, which he’s accomplished since he’s gotten right here and with the success that he’s had, the expectations rise,” he stated. “And when the expectations rise, it’s straightforward for the enjoyment to be robbed, and that’s simply form of the pure ebbs and movement of a profession.”

White doesn’t know precisely when the enjoyment returned. He jokes that he merely needed to inform himself to “simply knock it off.”

However, after the Toronto loss, he labored deliberately to shift his outlook.

“From that time on, I’m attempting to [accept that] making pictures, lacking pictures is a part of the sport,” White stated. “However [I’ve been] attempting to have that proper power and mindset, and it’s been higher since then.”

And, whereas he labored to regain his mojo, he had his teammates’ full assist.

“Me and D-White are tremendous shut, and I inform him daily to be aggressive,” Tatum stated. “We’re all the time in communication in the course of the recreation simply speaking by way of issues. We clearly wouldn’t be who we’re with out D-White. Him discovering his pleasure is tremendous vital to our success.”

Tatum and Brown have each been there earlier than — the 2 perennial All-Stars have gone by way of their very own slumps, and so they’ve additionally needed to struggle to succeed in constantly rising expectations.

“It’s not all the time good, and you would like it might be, however that’s our job as teammates: to maintain him inspired, hold his confidence excessive, as a result of we’d like him,” Tatum stated.

At observe Saturday, White howled throughout his trick shot competitors with the assistants, a smile pasted throughout his face.

The subsequent day, he posted a quintessential D-White stat line: 19 factors on 7-10 taking pictures, 9 rebounds, and seven assists.

In flip, the Celtics routed their division rival.

“He’s top-of-the-line level guards within the league,” Mazzulla stated. “When he performs like that, we’re a unique crew.”