Boston Celtics head coach Joe Mazulla praised Derrick White after the guard equalled an NBA record in their win over the Utah Jazz.

White recorded seven blocks in the 129-119 victory, tying Doug Christie, George Gervin, Dennis Johnson and Tracy McGrady for the most by a guard in the NBA.

The Celtics man also added 27 points, seven rebounds and six assists to his blocks, becoming the first guard in NBA history to put up those figures in a game.

Boston faced a difficult offseason when it came to their roster. After Jayson Tatum suffered an Achilles injury in the playoffs, they were also forced to trade Jrue Holiday, Kristaps Porzingis and Luke Kornet due to new salary cap rules.

Mazulla was pleased to see White take on the additional defensive responsibilities this season, which were very much on display in Utah.

"I think a couple of them came on ball, a couple of them came off ball," Mazzulla said of White's blocks against the Jazz.

DWhite put on a masterclass performance making him tonight’s @Gatorade Player of the Game  pic.twitter.com/CTBy3tR3Le

— Boston Celtics (@celtics) December 31, 2025

"And so I think this year his role has grown. When we went with Derrick, Payton [Pritchard], Anfernee [Simons] and Jaylen [Brown], and, you know, he has to guard the other team's best players.

"So we got a couple on pick-and-rolls, on pull-up threes at the beginning of the game when he's kind of roaming, and on guys that we could shift off of.

"He does a good job of coming in and knowing when to help and when not to. So just his defensive versatility [has improved]."

The Celtics are now 20-12 on the season, seeing them sit in third in the Eastern Conference, with Tatum still potentially in line to make a return before the playoffs.

They will start 2026 with a trip to the Sacramento Kings, while they also face the Los Angeles Clippers on the road before their first home game of the year on January 5 against the Chicago Bulls.