The Boston Celtics owe a dent of sorts to the San Antonio Spurs and their legendary head coach Gregg Popovich. The sometimes-gruff jefe of the Spurs is, after all, the prototype of the bedside manner of Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla. But more concretely, point guard Derrick White points to the coaching legend for helping mold him into the player he is today, a player critical to Boston winning their last title in 2024.
On an episode of former teammate Danilo Gallinari’s “A Cresta Alta” podcast, the University of Colorado – Boulder alum opened up about his former coach. “It was a blessing for sure to get him as my first coach,” said White of his luck for winding up playing for Popovich in his first stop in the NBA.
“Even the organization as a whole, it was definitely a blessing,” he continued. “I think like he’ll just tell you how it is, he’s not going to sugarcoat you.”
Apr 16, 2019; Denver, CO, USA; San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich talks with guard Derrick White (4) in the second quarter against the Denver Nuggets in game two of the first round of the 2019 NBA Playoffs at the Pepsi Center. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
“He’s not going to lead you on and make you think that I’m going to get some minutes here or whatnot,” added the Celtics guard.
“And I think the big thing that I learned from him is if you respect the game, you play the game the right way, the game will reward you and the basketball somehow feels that energy of you doing the wrong things or you’re not playing the right way and it’ll come back and get you in the long run.”
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This article originally appeared on Celtics Wire: Derrick White on how Spurs icon Gregg Popovich changed his career