This one Derrick White stat can predict the Celtics’ success

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This one Derrick White stat can predict the Celtics’ success originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The Boston Celtics’ roller-coaster play over the past month cannot be distilled down to one single factor. But you could be forgiven if you’ve ever wondered out loud if Derrick White busting out of his recent funk might be enough to steady this rocky ride.

There is perhaps no better bellwether of Boston’s night-to-night success than the performance of the team during White’s floor time. The Celtics are now 149-15 when White lands in the positive for single-game plus/minus since the start of the 2022-23 season.

That’s a staggering .909 winning percentage, for both regular season and playoff games, since the start of his first full season in green.

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Marred in a nasty shooting funk for much of December and January, White has shown signs of emerging from that slump, including scoring 20-plus points in three of his last five games. He produced a 23-point outing while hitting four 3-pointers during Saturday’s triumph over the Dallas Mavericks in an NBA Finals rematch.

White finished +7 in plus/minus against Dallas, moving the Celtics to an absurd 28-2 this season when White is a positive. In fact, the only two games the Celtics have lost with White in the positive both came against the Hawks — a narrow one-point defeat in November, and an overtime loss that Boston (literally) fumbled away earlier this month.

Admittedly, single-game plus/minus is a sometimes fluky stat. And you could easily counter that all of Boston’s starters have pretty glossy records when they land in the positive. But it’s also undeniable that Boston’s margin for error eroded recently as White and fellow backcourt mate Jrue Holiday struggled to provide their typical two-way jolt.

White had been steamrolling towards All-Star consideration before the shooting slump invaded in December. White suffered a right…

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Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/one-derrick-white-stat-predict-101910173.html

Author : NBC Sports Boston

Publish date : 2025-01-27 10:19:00

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