by As CelticDerrick White recently explained, getting traded as a professional athlete can be quite hectic, particularly if you don’t get much information from Gregg Popovich at first.
At the February 2022 trade deadline, White, 31, was acquired from the Spurs by the Celtics in return for Josh Richardson, Romeo Langford, a 2022 first-round pick, and the right to exchange 2028 first-round picks.
White has been a vital member of the club since coming to Boston, finally contributing to the addition of championship banner No. 18 in 2024.
However, White was originally upset about being moved on the fateful 2022 deadline day.
In the first episode of his recently created podcast, White Noise Podcast w/Derrick White, White said that getting moved is never easy.
Regarding being one of the names in an NBA contract, he stated, “I think it’s probably easier in the offseason, you kind of get time to relax and figure [things] out.” However, one of the most bizarre situations I’ve encountered in my NBA career is being traded during the season. One day they say, “Okay, you’re on the Celtics.” You’re on a team, you’re dedicated to them, and you’re doing everything you can to help them win games.
“When they traded me, I was definitely hurt,” White said of the Spurs.
In a way, he admitted that leaving a squad he had, up until that point, spent his whole professional career with was traumatic.
It is somewhat like that. Why aren’t they interested in me? They don’t think I’m real. He asked himself, “Why don’t you see their future with me there?” I thought, “Why don’t they want me?” I didn’t mind the rebuild.
The unavoidable reality that he wasn’t moving alone added to the strain.
At seven months, my wife was expecting a child. “That makes things even more bizarre,” White recalled. Since the roads make no sense, I believe that being traded to Boston makes it much more absurd. You have no idea where you’re heading. It’s all so unclear.
Everything is 20 minutes away from San Antonio. White half-jokingly remarked, “Boston, you could go two miles in twenty minutes, like it doesn’t make any sense.”
It was also noteworthy how exactly he found out about the transaction, with Popovich playing a key (and first enigmatic) part. Half the news came from the great coach.
Here we are in Atlanta. “We traded you,” says Pop as he enters the room.
Popovich, however, remained silent after informing him that he was no longer a Spur.
[Traded] to where, I wonder? “He asked,” White stated.
We wouldn’t f*** you, he says. Popovich told him, “We sent you to Boston,” White remembered.
White’s pal and Spurs trainer Brandon Bowman texted him to ask if he wanted a bottle. After White said that he did, the two began drinking and played dominoes.
As a result, players and coaches gathered in his hotel room for a farewell party.
Will Hardy, the assistant coach with the Celtics, eventually informed White that they were attempting to arrange for him to board a flight to Boston that was scheduled to depart in an hour and a half.
White continued even though he admitted that he wasn’t precisely in the right frame of mind to go.
“I’m lit right now,” White remarked. I’m trying to hurry to the airport, but I’m angry that I was exchanged. I barely made it to my flight.
White claimed he woke up early the next morning after arriving in Boston to start getting to know his new colleagues and getting ready to join the Celtics.
You meet everyone at once when you are traded. It’s not just the players; you also get to meet the front desk, the strength and training personnel, and the [nutritionists]. It’s astonishing how many people you meet.
He was finally permitted to play against the Nuggest that evening at TD Garden after a number of delays as all of the players involved in the trade—including those who had been transferred to San Antonio—passed their physicals.
Following the hectic process of getting traded, White reported with joy that his new fans welcomed him.
Boston’s audience is undoubtedly the best in the NBA, according to White. And he recalled thinking, “This is where I’m supposed to be,” after receiving a standing ovation when he checked in for the first time.
White finished his debut with 15 points and 6 rebounds in a 108-102 victory over Denver.
Since 2016, Hayden Bird has been employed at Boston.com as a sports staff writer. He covers all aspect of New England sports.
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