'I Love You!' Why Spurs Ex Derrick White Still Gets Cheers From San Antonio's Crowd
SAN ANTONIO — Attention and Victor Wembanyama have become synonymous since the 7-4 French rookie was drafted to the National Basketball Association.
It makes sense why. He's completely new to the eyes of many basketball fans. How often does an individual have to duck through many modern doorways? What about dunk the basketball without so much as jumping during warmups?
Every new crowd has flocked to their respective arenas to get a first look at the player who's been described as an "Alien" by LeBron James of all players. Summer League was just a preview of how enticing it was to watch Wembanyama play.
And at home? The same story remains.
That's why when Wembanyama enters the floor from the back tunnels at Frost Bank Center for warm ups, he's met with cheers and screams. He's bombarded with the love of a city looking for a savior for its basketball team every night he takes the floor in San Antonio.
But against the Boston Celtics on New Year's Eve, things felt slightly different. For a split second during warm ups, the attention waned away from Wembanyama.
Just for a second.
Dec 31, 2023; San Antonio, Texas, USA; Boston Celtics guard Derrick White (9) smiles in the second half against the San Antonio Spurs at Frost Bank Center.
© Daniel Dunn-USA TODAY Sports
Believing In Himself
Derrick White never thought he belonged in the NBA.
He wasn't ever the fastest, tallest or strongest among his peers, and while that normally leads into a cliché "but he was ..." statement, that wasn't the case, either. He simply didn't think he would ever make it to the highest level.
"High schoolers are [usually] like 'I've got a chance to make it to the league'," White said. "But when I was in high school, I was like 'Let me try to get to college.'"
White did make it to college. He played three years of Division II basketball for the University of Colorado, Colorado Springs before transferring to CU Boulder for his final season of eligibility. While there, he began to make a name for himself through his half-court facilitation skills and ability to be coached.
That name was large enough for him to be given a chance in the NBA playing for the San Antonio Spurs and Hall-of-Fame coach Gregg Popovich.
"The immediate thing you could see was that he had a nose for the game," Popovich said. "We got him, and in development he was outstanding. He spent a lot of time before and after practices, at summer leagues, learning how to play."
Apr 16, 2019; Denver, CO, USA; San Antonio Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich talks with guard Derrick White (4) in the second quarter against the Denver Nuggets in game two of the first round of the 2019 NBA Playoffs at the Pepsi Center.
© Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports
The point guard spent a majority of his rookie season doing exactly as Popovich had explained. He learned. White only appeared in 17 games for the main-stage Spurs, averaging just over three points and one rebound a game to go along with a handful of steals and blocks. He wasn't stuffing the stat sheet, but he was learning.
And that was all that mattered to Popovich.
"[He] just kept pushing me," White said of his first professional coach. "He saw something in me that I didn't see in myself. ... I used to be in the meal room, and he'd walk in and say 'You belong' and walk out.
"It's cool to hear [that] from the greatest coach of All-time."
Whether it was in the G League, in San Antonio or off the court, the pair's relationship continued to develop. As did White's game.
In his second year, White became a regular starter for the Spurs. He appeared in 67 games and started 55, averaging triple his point average from the year prior to pair with triple the rebounds and assists. He began to shoot more efficiently and develop into a bona fide game impactor.
The point guard grew incredibly fond of Popovich and his commitment to helping him develop throughout his five seasons in San Antonio, but just as much as he respected his coach, his coach respected him. And Popovich made that extremely clear.
"I couldn't be more proud of a player," Popovich said. "When he first came [to us], I don't think he believed he belonged in the NBA. To watch him develop through the years starting with the G League ... has just been a thrill to watch."
Safe to say, White benefitted from his time in San Antonio. He learned to play from one of the game's All-time great coaches and grew every year he was there. That's why he still appreciates the Spurs when he goes back once a year.
But it's also part of the reason why the fanbase welcomes him back with open arms.
Back to San Antonio
"I love you, Derrick White!"
As Boston Celtics players began to emerge from the visiting tunnel to the court for warmups on New Year's Eve, fans on either side of the railing — decked out in Boston Green — welcomed them and cheered as they began to work through their pre-game routines.
Jayson Tatum, Kristaps Porzingis and even Jaylen Brown made appearances, all warranting the same reaction, but when Derrick White emerged, it wasn't just the Celtics fans who cheered for him.
It was the entire arena. And they gave him a special verbal embrace.
Boston faithful, Spurs faithful and even some players on San Antonio's roster were among those to give White a warm welcome back to Frost Bank Center — or AT&T Center, as he knew it during his time with the Spurs — and it was clear that seeing the point guard again meant more than what you'd expect from a former player reuniting with old teammates.
Why was that?
Simply put, White is a strong player with a stronger personality. He was a glue guy for the Spurs while he developed, and left a hole in the rotation when he was traded to Boston as a part of the Josh Richardson and Romeo Langford trade.
"He was a main piece for us," Tre Jones said when the trade was announced. "We knew that a lot of the younger guys would have to step up and fill that role. Not just one person."
Dec 31, 2023; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs guard Tre Jones (right) speaks with former teammate Derrick White ahead of his team's matchup against the Boston Celtics.
© Reginald Thomas II-San Antonio Spurs
White's role was more than one person. That's because of his ability to defend as well as produce points on offense. He became a multi-faceted star with the Spurs, and continued to grow in Boston — with no hard feelings from San Antonio's fans.
"He's grown into the starting point guard for our team," Celtics coach Joe Mazulla said of White. "That comes with the responsibility of play-calling [and] playing the right way all the time. He doesn't just affect the game on offense, he affects it defensively, too.
"We're very fortunate to have him as a player."
Instead of getting the booing treatment that a couple of ex-Spurs get when returning to Frost Bank Center, White got quite the opposite. Even when his new team was up by more than 20 points on the Spurs.
His tomahawk dunk in the third quarter made that clear.
After sending Frost Bank Center into a frenzy with his breakaway dunk, White continued to lay it on the Spurs. He finished with 17 points, five assists, a 50 percent clip from 3-point range and countless positive chants from the entire arena.
"White's an All-Star! ... White's an All-Star! ... White's an All-Star!"
Besides winning over the Spurs' crowd, White also got a chance to meet its new fan-favorite, Victor Wembanyama, on the court — though their height difference made that a little difficult in the open court. After receiving a pass from a steal in the third quarter, the rookie took one dribble to get from half court to the bucket, switching from a dunk to a finger-roll and back to a dunk all while suspended in the air.
White was technically guarding him — but not really.
"I'm not an idiot," White said with a smile. "I was hoping he'd take another dribble, but he just picked it up and I never saw it again. ... That was crazy. The things he can do on the court is pretty special."
Wembanyama might have walked away with the highlight of the game, but White's Celtics flew back to Boston with a win, and he was a big part of the reason why.
Derrick White is a game impactor. He's a starting point guard, and according to the Spurs' home crowd, he's also an All-Star. But above all, he's a brilliant case of believing in yourself. Of learning and trusting the development process. And that he'll always be.
Especially to Popovich and the Spurs — White's biggest fans from afar.
"He's a great story," Popovich said. "In starting out at the bottom and believing in himself and doing the work necessary to get where he is now. ... He's one of the greatest guys ever, and his confidence has just exploded."
