Derrick White's Boston Celtics teammates were thrilled to watch him notch the first triple-double of his career Monday night at TD Garden.
White was well on his way to achieving the feat after his stellar first half. He racked up 17 points (5-10 3-PT), seven rebounds, and seven assists through the first two quarters.
The C's guard ended up with 22 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 assists to help Boston blow out Detroit, 119-94. He earned the triple-double with his 10th assist -- a dish to Payton Pritchard for 3 -- midway through the fourth quarter.
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Watch the clip below, featuring a hilarious celebration by big man Luke Kornet:
The celebration continued during White's postgame interview with Kayla Burton. Kornet, Jrue Holiday, Al Horford, and Horford's son Ean snuck up on White and gave him a water bath.
During his postgame press conference, a humble White described his thought process while looking for his last couple of assists to complete the triple-double.
"I'm not usually one to chase stats or whatnot," he said. "But when I had seen that I was one away -- that's probably why I had those three turnovers there at the end. But I've been close a lot of times, so I was like, ‘I’m gonna try to get it this time.' Shoutout to my teammates, for real."
Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla praised White for his outstanding all-around performance.
"It's great for him, I'm happy for him," he told reporters. "He's continuing to grow as a two-way player on both sides of the ball. ... The triple-double is an example of who he is as a player, but it doesn't show how great he is on both ends of the floor."
White has only improved since joining the C's via a trade with the San Antonio Spurs in 2022. With his first triple-double officially in the books, an NBA title and an All-Star nod are the next two items on his checklist.
