[Forsberg] Winter blues? Derrick White is battling his annual January shooting slump
January 20, 2026
[Forsberg] Winter blues? Derrick White is battling his annual January shooting slump
13 comments
From Chris Forsberg:
In his four full seasons since joining the Celtics, Derrick White has routinely slumped his way through January. It might have cost him an All-Star nod during the 2024 title season. On Monday night, in a showdown of Eastern Conference titans, White missed 10 of the 11 shots he hoisted against the Pistons and turned hesitant during the fourth-quarter moments where he typically thrives.
The numbers confirm what’s been hiding in plain sight: January is White’s toughest month. In his four full seasons since joining Boston, White’s scoring plummets to his lowest output of the seven regular-season months. It’s the only month in that span that he’s shooting under 40 percent from the field overall, and his January 3-point percentage is the worst of the seven months as well.
… The good news: History suggests White typically rebounds well in February. That has been both his highest scoring month — and best shooting month, by far — over the past four seasons. White is averaging 17.3 points per game in the month of February the past four years, while shooting 49.6 percent overall and 43 percent beyond the arc.
I don’t think it’s really a slump I think he’s just kinda tired from the expanded role and unable to get the clean looks he got the last couple years because he’s overburdened on ball and we don’t have enough playmaking around him to feed him good looks
Derrick white is still Derrick white he’s just miscast
Every single time it kills his all star momentum the past two years
I can’t imagine where this team would be if White and PP had typical shooting seasons. If you told me they’d struggle to shoot most of the year, I would have thought that was an easy way for us to lose a bunch of games. Yet here we sit, 2nd in the East and with the 2nd best offense in the NBA.
When Derrick’s sad, I’m sad 😔
He was slumping at the start of the season. Than caught fire, then slumping again. If he can time the slump right before the playoffs starts, that would be great
It seems to be a pattern more than a slump.
Some of the comments on the game thread were so mean towards White. He could struggle all year and I won’t give up on him. I love him and we know what he can be on a better team and with his bestie JT. So what he’s not a true #2.
Derrick isn’t a number 2, and I think people are just having trouble adjusting to that fact. He’s been asked to do so much, when he’s never been a beat-his-man-off-the-bounce-compromise-the-defense type guy like he’s been asked to do this year. That’s not his game. But, he gives you literally everything else: low turnovers, playmaking, defense. Behind Neemi, he is our best rim protector as a 6’4” guard. That’s insane. I’ll never doubt what d white does for this team, and when Tatum comes back him struggling this hard now will make him even more equipped to handle pressure in the post season and seasons beyond this.
We are so spoiled here. If Dwhite was a 3rd option on any other team, that would immediately vault that team to contention just based on what he brings as a 3rd option. Here, he’s miscast as a number 2 and he isn’t that. He’s going through it but like always, he’ll come out better for it.
He’s had 13 of what I consider very bad games this year shooting 33% or less. He also has 13 games scoring 20 or more points. 50/50 ratio is not great for the 2nd best player on the roster
dudes been slumping all season. he needs to take a backseat and stop playing like dillon brooks. this team has enough players to find the right shot. his shot is simply not the right shot over half the time anymore.
White just needs to realize he’s not Steph and lay off the 3’s, he’ll be 1 for 11 and still be pullin up brickin.
Ive seen enough and convinced he’s not a scorer at all. At best 4th option
13 comments
From Chris Forsberg:
In his four full seasons since joining the Celtics, Derrick White has routinely slumped his way through January. It might have cost him an All-Star nod during the 2024 title season. On Monday night, in a showdown of Eastern Conference titans, White missed 10 of the 11 shots he hoisted against the Pistons and turned hesitant during the fourth-quarter moments where he typically thrives.
White was field-goal-less when he stepped to the free throw line early in the fourth quarter to shoot a technical freebie. He missed that one, too — in [a game the Celtics would lose by a point, 104-103](https://www.nbcsportsboston.com/nba/boston-celtics/live-updates-highlights-score-pistons/761558/).
The numbers confirm what’s been hiding in plain sight: January is White’s toughest month. In his four full seasons since joining Boston, White’s scoring plummets to his lowest output of the seven regular-season months. It’s the only month in that span that he’s shooting under 40 percent from the field overall, and his January 3-point percentage is the worst of the seven months as well.
… The good news: History suggests White typically rebounds well in February. That has been both his highest scoring month — and best shooting month, by far — over the past four seasons. White is averaging 17.3 points per game in the month of February the past four years, while shooting 49.6 percent overall and 43 percent beyond the arc.
[Read more here](https://www.nbcsportsboston.com/nba/boston-celtics/derrick-white-january-shooting-slump/761762/).
I don’t think it’s really a slump I think he’s just kinda tired from the expanded role and unable to get the clean looks he got the last couple years because he’s overburdened on ball and we don’t have enough playmaking around him to feed him good looks
Derrick white is still Derrick white he’s just miscast
Every single time it kills his all star momentum the past two years
I can’t imagine where this team would be if White and PP had typical shooting seasons. If you told me they’d struggle to shoot most of the year, I would have thought that was an easy way for us to lose a bunch of games. Yet here we sit, 2nd in the East and with the 2nd best offense in the NBA.
When Derrick’s sad, I’m sad 😔
He was slumping at the start of the season. Than caught fire, then slumping again. If he can time the slump right before the playoffs starts, that would be great
It seems to be a pattern more than a slump.
Some of the comments on the game thread were so mean towards White. He could struggle all year and I won’t give up on him. I love him and we know what he can be on a better team and with his bestie JT. So what he’s not a true #2.
Derrick isn’t a number 2, and I think people are just having trouble adjusting to that fact. He’s been asked to do so much, when he’s never been a beat-his-man-off-the-bounce-compromise-the-defense type guy like he’s been asked to do this year. That’s not his game. But, he gives you literally everything else: low turnovers, playmaking, defense. Behind Neemi, he is our best rim protector as a 6’4” guard. That’s insane. I’ll never doubt what d white does for this team, and when Tatum comes back him struggling this hard now will make him even more equipped to handle pressure in the post season and seasons beyond this.
We are so spoiled here. If Dwhite was a 3rd option on any other team, that would immediately vault that team to contention just based on what he brings as a 3rd option. Here, he’s miscast as a number 2 and he isn’t that. He’s going through it but like always, he’ll come out better for it.
He’s had 13 of what I consider very bad games this year shooting 33% or less. He also has 13 games scoring 20 or more points. 50/50 ratio is not great for the 2nd best player on the roster
dudes been slumping all season. he needs to take a backseat and stop playing like dillon brooks. this team has enough players to find the right shot. his shot is simply not the right shot over half the time anymore.
White just needs to realize he’s not Steph and lay off the 3’s, he’ll be 1 for 11 and still be pullin up brickin.
Ive seen enough and convinced he’s not a scorer at all. At best 4th option