"All those things have turned me into someone who shoots 10 threes a game" – Derrick White recalls the time Steph validated his jumpshot

Since arriving in Boston, Derrick White has developed into one of the best role players in the Association. A man who, before coming to the Boston Celtics, spent four and a half seasons elevating his game under the guidance of Gregg Popovich in the San Antonio Spurs to become one of the best 3-and-D guys out there.

Still, in a Celtics uniform, he got more freedom and responsibility and immediately began to show it on the court. At the end of the day, we’re talking about an NBA champion and Olympic gold medalist with Team USA in Paris 2024. One aspect of his game that he raised to a higher level is definitely his three-point shooting. He now takes threes with enormous confidence, and as he himself admitted, everything changed when Stephen Curry approached him during their matchup.

“Steph came up to me and he’s like what have you been doing? This is unbelievable, I respect your work, and I’m like, let me shoot some more, I gotta jack some more shots. I must be doing something right. All those threes have turned me into someone who shoots 10 threes a game and take crazy ones now,” White said on the White Noise Podcast. “Steph came up to me and was like, ‘What have you been doing? This is unbelievable. I respect your work!'”

Steph’s words gave him a huge confidence boost

White started his career taking just 0.8 threes per game, but by last season, he had risen into the league’s elite, hitting 38.4 percent on a staggering 9.1 attempts per game. It is also worth mentioning that only four players launched more threes than he did.

It’s obvious that Steph’s words gave him a huge confidence boost that pushed him to be even bolder and take his game to another level. The fact that on a star-studded Team USA roster, he was maybe the only role player, but the one Steve Kerr knew would be crucial in close games, says enough about the reputation Boston’s guard has built in recent seasons.

Grant Hill, Team USA GM, once explained why White was chosen as Kawhi Leonard’s Olympic replacement.

“He is someone who is accustomed to playing alongside great players. He plays with two great young stars in Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown,” said Hill on Sirius XM radio, via Jared Weiss. “So he knows how to be a complementary piece but also stand out in his role,” added Hill. “And so, obviously, we have tremendous star power on this team. But he’s a guy that, whether he sits for two games or he plays in the fourth quarter, he’s going to have a great attitude, he’s going to be Derrick White.”

NBA champion and Olympic gold medalist

Hill’s words describe White perfectly, because the Celtics would have had a hard time achieving their success without his contributions on both ends of the floor.

A man who will do all the dirty work for Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, who will guard the best opposing players, switch onto bigger players and on the other end still be enough of a threat on offense to relieve his superstars. That’s D-White, NBA champion, Olympic gold medalist and an ultimate glue guy every contender dreams of having on their roster.

This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Sep 15, 2025, where it first appeared in the Latest News section. Add Basketball Network as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

“All those things have turned me into someone who shoots 10 threes a game” – Derrick White recalls the time Steph validated his jumpshot

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