The Celtics will be without Derrick White in Thursday night’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder. White, who is dealing with a right knee contusion, was initially listed as questionable after suffering the injury in Tuesday’s game against the Oklahoma City Thunder.
That comes on top of the Celtics already being with Jayson Tatum (right Achilles injury management) and Nikola Vucevic (right ring finger fracture). Baylor Scheierman will likely return to the starting lineup in Tatum’s absence; Ron
Harper Jr., Hugo Gonzalez, and Jordan Walsh will all likely see increased minutes as well.
Derrick White’s absence could be costly for the Celtics
White is averaging 17.5 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 4.4 assists this season. He’s missed just two games all season and has been one of the Celtics’ most impactful defenders. White has the highest plus-minus on the Celtics — the Celtics have outscored opponents by 481 points in his minutes. The next most impactful plus-minus player, Neemias Queta, is a +337 on the court.
In White’s absence, two-way guard Ron Harper Jr. will likely see increased minutes. Harper Jr. is fresh off the best scoring game of his NBA career, in which he exploded for 22 points on 8 of 11 shooting on Tuesday night against his brother, Dylan, and the Spurs.
Harper Jr. has appeared in 19 games this season for the Celtics after beginning the year in the G League, and is averaging 4.1 points in 11.9 minutes per night.
The Thunder, meanwhile, will be without Isaiah Hartenstein (left calf contusion) and Jalen Williams (right hamstring strain). Thomas Sorber, who tore his right ACL, is out, as is Nikola Topic, who is on assignment in the G League. Branden Carlson is out with a low back strain.
