Celts

White talked about his newly repaired teeth, his Olympic gold medal, having his hat knocked off his head in a fight, and much more.

Derrick White had a lot to smile about during his press conference at Celtics Media Day on Tuesday.

The veteran guard won his first NBA title this summer, won a gold medal with the U.S. national team at the Olympics and signed a four-year, $126 million contract extension with the Celtics in the offseason.

He also spent some time getting his teeth fixed after being slammed face down on the ground during the NBA Finals. His chipped tooth look that was part of his title celebration is gone.

“My teeth are getting better,” White said. “I had to go to the dentist on Friday and had three root canals, so that was fun. I think I have to go to the dentist again, but the teeth are good.”

White said it was a “great feeling” that the extension was completed and Boston had long-term stability.

“I’ve said since I got here that I don’t want to go anywhere else,” White said. “I love playing for this organization, with this team, this coaching staff and for these fans. I was super excited to finally have it over, especially so early in the summer so I didn’t have to answer all the questions about it. I love being here and my family and I are super excited to be here for a while.”

It was an exciting summer for White, but one that also brought some controversy. He replaced Kawhi Leonard on the Olympic team and was selected ahead of teammate Jaylen Brown, the reigning NBA Finals MVP.

Brown wasn’t happy about being passed over, and there was speculation about whether the situation could affect the team’s chemistry. White said there were no issues that needed to be addressed.

“There are no elephants here. That was never an issue,” said White. “It never had to be talked about. Everyone had a great summer and is looking forward to the season.”

White, who played college basketball at Colorado, returned to his alma mater last month to watch the Buffaloes play football when a video surfaced of a fan apparently punching White in the face.

The punch didn’t work, White said, but he shouldn’t have been in that situation.

“Obviously the situation in Colorado is unfortunate,” White said. “Honestly, I never thought I would be in this situation. I didn’t really get hit, he just ripped my hat off. But that shouldn’t have happened, it’s unfortunate and we’re just moving on.”

White said he was thrilled that the Celtics signed his former Spurs teammate Lonnie Walker IV in the offseason.

“It’s nice to see Lonnie again. That’s my guy. He was drafted a year after me,” White said. “We were just a couple of young guys trying to figure it out and learn under (Gregg Popovich). He started in Austin his rookie year, like I did, so it’s similar things. It’s always nice to see him, good guy, good energy in the gym and he’s going to do a lot of special things on the court.”

White said a great summer was made even better by the addition of an Olympic gold medal to his collection of titles.

“It was just amazing to get that call,” White said. “I was just at home, relaxing and chilling and getting that call and being part of this team with legends of the game and the best people the game has to offer right now.”

“I was just grateful to be part of this team, to go out and learn so much and just try to help us win gold, which was obviously a special moment. So it was a good summer and I enjoyed it.”