Derrick White has signed a contract extension with the Boston Celtics for four years and $125.9 million, making him one of the highest-paid players on the team. With his 40% raise on his 2024-25 salary, White is now positioned as the starting point guard for the team. The extension ensures that the Celtics will face significant luxury tax bills starting in the 2025-26 season, as they have already committed to keeping their core group of young players together.
Jaylen Brown started a super-max extension this season, and Jayson Tatum is likely to follow next year. This has positioned the Celtics as championship favorites for the upcoming season, but it also means that maintaining this talented roster will be expensive. Despite Holiday’s age, he remains an important member of the team’s core group, which includes young stars like Tatum, Brown, and Porzingis.
Looking ahead, the Celtics have potential for a multi-year run of success with their core group of young players. While Holiday may be closer to retiring, the team’s core is secured for at least several seasons. After an impressive 64-win season in which they made it to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals, the Celtics are not just focused on repeating as champions but establishing a legacy that will stand for years to come. This sets a high bar for other teams in the league looking to challenge Boston for supremacy.
White’s contract extension is just one piece of evidence of how committed Boston is to keeping its top talent together. With Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum already under long-term deals, and Kemba Walker opting into his player option for next season, it looks like Boston will have its core group locked in place through at least 2025.
Despite being a defensive guard off the bench when he first arrived from San Antonio during last year’s trade deadline, White has quickly become a key player for Boston on offense. He has shown growth in his shooting percentages and taken on more responsibility as a ball-handler.
In addition to their talented roster and strong commitment to keeping their top players together, Boston has also had success offensively under head coach Brad Stevens. The team finished fourth in offensive efficiency last season and was ranked eighth overall in field goal percentage.
With so much talent on their roster and a strong commitment from management to keep them together, it’s hard not to see Boston continuing its success over the next few years. Whether or not they can win another championship remains to be seen – after all, nobody can guarantee success – but they certainly have all the pieces in place to give it their best shot.
Overall, Derrick White’s contract extension is just one more step towards establishing himself as a key player for Boston while also ensuring that they can afford to maintain their talented roster over time. As long as they continue playing well and staying healthy – two big ifs – there’s no reason why this team can’t continue its run of success over at least several more seasons.