Gregg Popovich Jokes at Derrick White Sitting Out Spurs Reunion: 'He's Afraid of Us'
As the San Antonio Spurs prepare to take on the Boston Celtics for the second time this season, head coach Gregg Popovich decided to take some playful jabs at former Spurs guard Derrick White, who won't suit up in this one due to an ankle sprain.
When asked about White's absence in his pregame press conference, Popovich got some laughs with his response: "He's afraid of us."
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The Hall-of-Fame coach knows how to make a good joke, as the Celtics are favored by 15.5 points over the Spurs on Wednesday night. Also, in the Spurs' last meeting against the Celtics on New Year's Eve, they lost in blowout fashion, 134-101. White put up 17 points, three rebounds and five assists in 27 minutes against his former team.
Although the Spurs are still huge underdogs against the Celtics, they'll have a slightly better chance to pull off an upset with White and Kristaps Porzingis sitting out. Meanwhile, the Spurs have a clean injury report.
White enjoyed his time with the Spurs, but he's having an even better time with the Celtics, as he's averaging 15.9 points, 3.9 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game while shooting 47.0 percent from the field, including 41.2 percent from deep. Not only is Boston considered one of the few title favorites this season, but White has even been brought up in All-Star selection conversations.
Stay tuned to Inside The Spurs for extensive postgame coverage following the game tonight.
