Marcus Smart’s departure from the Boston Celtics caught my by surprise this offseason, including Smart himself. Spending

all nine years of his career in Boston, Smart was traded to the Memphis Grizzlies in the multi-team trade that sent former

All-Star big man Kristaps Porzingis to the Celtics.

In wake of Smart’s departure, Boston will be looking for a new face to lead their backcourt as they enter the 2023-24 season

as title contenders once more. Fortunately for the Celtics, they have quite a few experienced guards on their roster

and Derrick White is set to become Smart’s successor.

During a press conference on Wednesday to announce Jaylen Brown’s record-breaking $304 million contract extension,

head coach Joe Mazzulla was asked about the starting point guard position and who would replace Smart in the rotation.

Mazzulla, whose answers are always very simple and to the point, made the answer to this question clear. “Derrick will be

our starting point guard,” he stated briefly, via The Athletic’s Jay King.

There is no replacing the defensive tendencies Smart brought to Boston night-in and night-out, but White had himself a

terrific first full season with the Celtics this past year.

Playing in all 82 games, 70 of which he started alongside Smart, White average 12.4 points and 3.9 assists per game while

shooting 38.1 percent from three-point range. A great on-ball defender in his own right out on the perimeter, White was

named to the All-Defensive Second Team for the first time in his career.

Originally traded from the San Antonio Spurs to the Celtics ahead of the trade deadline during the 2021-22 season, the

former first-round pick has carved out a key role in Boston for himself. Jayson Tatum and Brown are obviously the focal

points for this team, but in order for them to potentially get back to the NBA Finals, White will have to continue to be the

impactful “do-it-all” type of player he is. Whether it is scoring, passing, rebounding or defending, White can do a little bit of

everything to help the Celtics win.

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Jaylen Brown’s heartwarming financial plans after massive $304 million extension with Celtics

Jaylen Brown got the bag. There is probably no other situation right now for which this idiom applies more aptly than with

Brown securing a massive and record-breaking $304 million extension with the Boston Celtics. The big question now is how

the young man intends to spend all this hard-earned money.

As it turns out, Jaylen Brown already knows exactly what he’s going to do. When asked about what his plans are now that

he’s set to become the highest-paid player in the history of the NBA, the two-time All-Star had a very impressive and truly

heart-warming response:

“I want to attack that wealth gap here in Boston, create a project,” Brown said. “Also, I wanna help stimulate the overall

economy and I want to bring Black Wall Street here to Boston.”

Brown did not give a generic response either. A lesser man could have stated that he intends to use his money to help the

poor, and while this was the Celtics star’s underlying message, what is clear is that Brown has given this matter a lot of

thought. He provided a comprehensive plan as to how he intends to “attack the wealth gap” in the city, which makes his

statement even more inspiring.