Perceptiveness is among the wide and deep well of traits that makes Derrick White a special basketball player and teammate.
And so it was hardly a surprise when he observed recently, after Team USA’s Olympic-opening win over Serbia in Lille, that he and runningmate Jrue Holiday had something of an advantage over some higher-profile teammates.
While the superstars on the team have to acclimate to sharing the ball and splitting minutes with other high-usage, name-in-lights peers, White noted to the Globe’s Adam Himmelsbach that he and Holiday basically have the same job assignment as they do with the Celtics.
That assignment is having the prescience, savvy, and skill to provide whatever the team needs on either end of the court.
“It makes it easy for me and Jrue,” said White. “We just try to go out there and do what we do and try to help us impact winning whenever we can. I know we’ve got a lot of talented guys on the team.”
It would be both easy and correct to say that White and Holiday are exceptional being Glue Guys. There might be three guards as well-rounded and utterly unselfish in the entire NBA, and they were a major reason the Celtics will be hoisting their 18th championship banner to the TD Garden rafters.
(You’d better believe I’m one brilliant Holiday/White game away from declaring them America’s Backcourt, Steph Curry or no Steph Curry.)
But I can’t help but wonder: Is anyone else with me hoping that basketball fans who are watching White and Holiday work their selfless wonders for Team USA finally recognize that these guys are superstars in their own way, and true stars in the conventional way?
I’m talking mostly about White here. Holiday is still somewhat undervalued in the public consciousness — he absolutely does not belong ranked below Kyrie Irving on any list of the league’s best players, for instance, and that is something that has happened.
But Holiday has a sweet array of accolades. He’s made six All-Defensive teams (including second team along with White this past season), two All-Star teams, has been named Stokes/Twyman Teammate of the Year three times, and has been the spine of two NBA champions.
History will not underrate him. Holiday will be honored in Springfield someday.
White? He’s still treated like an underdog. To a degree that’s understandable.
He played Division 2 for a spell. He had student loans, which is about as relatable as it gets for many of us. Even when he made the league, as the Spurs’ first-round pick, No. 29 overall in 2017, he needed time in what is now the G League to build his confidence and hone his skills.
But it also has become . . . mildly irksome? Yes, I think that’s it. Mildly irksome.
So much of the talk around White is that he’s underrated, a role player, an unsung hero.
Those are all wonderful things to be as a basketball player. But White is more than that, and he truly deserves to come away from these Olympics properly rated. A sung hero, you know?
I want people to recognize how good he is, without qualifiers.
It shouldn’t be a cute story if he’s under consideration for the All-Star team next season, as was this year. It should be considered an obvious possibility for one of the best all-around guards in the league.
There will be no excuse in the future for White being overlooked.
It should not have been an issue, whatsoever, that White was selected to replace Kawhi Leonard on Team USA. Jaylen Brown’s frustration with being passed over is understandable, but anyone who considered White anything less than a worthy pick has no idea how to properly construct a basketball team.
And even then, after he was added to Team USA, the common thinking was that he wouldn’t play much, as if he wouldn’t figure out a way to be additive no matter which four superstars he shared the court with.
Celtics fans knew that White would have an accelerated learning curve, fit in seamlessly, and impress his coaches to the degree that he would emerge not as a spare part, but one who is both complementary and essential.
We have been fortunate enough to experience White acclimating, then gaining confidence, improving (and may still be improving), and ultimately thriving during the 2½ seasons in which he has become a quintessential Celtic.
White probably couldn’t care less about how he’s perceived, or whether he’s considered a star. He’s not low-maintenance. He’s no-maintenance. A well-adjusted, down-to-earth guy who appreciates the amazing plot twists of his basketball life.
But he’s such a distinct pleasure to have on the team that you care about that you want him to get his entire due.
White, like Holiday, and like everyone else on one of the best basketball teams ever assembled, is a genuine star, no qualifiers welcome or necessary.
To put it another way: Every single player on Team USA is going to come away from this experience wishing he had White on his team.
They’ll be lucky to find a decent replica.
