Celtics’ Derrick White gets DPOY praise from Jaylen Brown after epic play vs Heat

On Wednesday evening, the Boston Celtics got back into the win column with a blowout road win over the Miami Heat. The Celtics got off to a scorching start to this one, scoring 53 points on 11 three-pointers in the first quarter alone, and ultimately winning the game by a final score of 147-129.

Arguably the play of the game came at the very end of the second quarter, when Derrick White found Jaylen Brown on a beautiful fast break lob, and then raced back down to the other end of the floor to alter a layup attempt from Heat guard Pelle Larson and prevent the basket.

DERRICK WHITE IS EVERYWHERE —

Lob assist & immediately gets the block. pic.twitter.com/0OLZkvA9ZU

— Hoop Central (@TheHoopCentral) April 2, 2026

After the game, Brown shared his candid reaction to the epic hustle play.

“I look up, and I’m thinking that Larson has a wide open layup, and then D-White comes flying out of nowhere. That’s impressive. That’s like First Team All-Defense type stuff. Those are Defensive Player of the Year-type plays,” said Brown, per Noa Dalzell of CelticsBlog on X, formerly Twitter.

In many ways, the play encapsulated what makes White such a special player for the Celtics, able to make smart reads and create offense on one end of the floor, while acting as an elite disruptor on the other end.

White’s shooting numbers have been down pretty significantly this year, but he’s made up for it with his defense, which has gone a long way in helping Boston hold down the fort in the absence of Jayson Tatum, who recently returned from his Achilles injury.

White will almost assuredly be on one of the all-defense teams this year, as Brown referenced, and will have a real chance of getting on the first team.

The Celtics will next hit the floor on Friday evening for a road game against the Milwaukee Bucks.

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