Getty Derrick White, Grant Williams
The Boston Celtics have opened their training camp without Grant Williams for the first time since 2018. With him gone, Derrick White joked at how different the environment is without Williams while praising Jayson Tatum for his leadership.
“(Tatum)’s not being like Grant or nothing, thank God,” White said, per The Athletic’s Jay King.
Derrick White said Jayson Tatum is one of the players who has stepped up his vocal leadership: “He’s not being like Grant or nothing, thank God.”
White later clarified that he has no ill will towards Williams and merely notes how different everything is without him around.
“It’s a lot quieter over there without Grant, that’s for sure. I mean, obviously, it was a lot of fun last year with Grant, and I’m always wishing him the best. But it’s much calmer. Life is good,” White said, per Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston.
Notes from Day 2 of Celtics training camp:
* Jrue Holiday went through his first practice. Joe Mazzulla’s recap: ““Good. Fully healthy. Did what we expected him to do and he fit right in.”
* Holiday introduction here this afternoon at 4 p.m.
* Derrick White on not having…
Williams was known for being a little bit of a goofball during his time with the Celtics. After the Celtics beat the Denver Nuggets during the 2021-22 season, Jaylen Brown revealed that Williams wanted to be called “Batman” because of his defense on Nikola Jokic, whose nickname is “The Joker.”
Adding onto that, during Halloween of 2022, he did a press conference while in a Batman costume and did a vocal impression of The Caped Crusader himself, which drew Tatum’s ire.
With Williams now on the Dallas Mavericks, the Celtics may have a different feel this season.
Joe Mazzulla Inviting Celtics Legends to Training Camp
On October 4, Celtics Head Coach Joe Mazzulla explained why he invited former Celtics, like Paul Pierce, to the team’s training camp.
“I sent an email out to all the Celtic former players because I felt like it’s important that we share in this experience together,” Mazzulla told reporters, per MassLive’s Brian Robb. “They started the tradition, they kept it going, and now it’s our responsibility as an organization to keep it alive. But when you don’t see them all the time, you don’t get that connection to the past. The only past we have is the banners alone. The past should be the banners, but it should be the people.”
Among those in attendance was Paul Pierce, to which Mazzulla compared him coming to Celtics training camo to pro players practicing at their college campuses.
“So I thought it was extremely important that any and every Celtic is welcome to practice or a game so we can build that brotherhood of what we are. And I kind of compare it to college. Like, when guys go to the NBA, they always go back to their college to work out. We see that all the time. And so you should be coming back here. So I appreciate him and being there and extending that to everyone.”
Paul Pierce still finding a way to be part of Jayson Tatum’s workouts.
Kristaps Porzingis Believes He Can Find Rhythm in Boston
Kristaps Porzingis knows what he could do with Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. He believes that not only will they complement each other well, but he believes they’ll find a rhythm in due time with them.
“It’s just gonna be a matter of time before we find our rhythm on the court,” Porzingis told Taylor Snow of Celtics.com. “I think my game is going to complement their game so much. I’m going to try to open things up for them, and I know that’s what’s going to make my game much easier. I’m looking forward to that.”
Porzingis is the most offensively talented big man Tatum and Brown have ever played with. Knowing Porzingis’ rare skillset for someone his size, he could open up quite a bit for them and vice versa.
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Derrick White Playfully Mocks Ex-Celtic Grant Williams During Training Camp