Getty Payton Pritchard, Boston Celtics
Since the Boston Celtics traded Dennis Schroder to the Houston Rockets at the February 14 trade deadline, we’ve seen far more of Payton Pritchard, and the sophomore guard is thriving with the additional playing time.
In recent weeks, Pritchard has found himself thrust into the Celtics closing lineup, as Ime Udoka leans on the guard’s shooting ability to help stretch the floor for the teams slashing wings. Throughout his first two years in the league, Pritchard has proven himself to be a valuable shooter at the NBA level, boasting seemingly limitless range while also proving he doesn’t need the ball in his hands to be effective.
“People want to look at stats and numbers, but at the beginning of the year, I’m playing sometimes at the very end of games and different minutes. I just come in, be ready, knock down shots, play hard defense, make plays, be a winning player. For me, once that trade deadline happened, that was my mindset to come in and compete and keep earning more trust from the coaching staff,” Pritchard said during a recent press conference.
Throughout the early parts of the season, Pritchard’s lack of playing time was a point of contention for the majority of the Celtics fanbase. After impressing under Brad Stevens last season, most fans expected the sharpshooting guard to continue developing in his second year, but the sophomore guard found minutes hard to come by due to the team’s addition of Dennis Schroder.
Of course, once Schroder left the roster in February, Pritchard was faced with fresh opportunities, and he’s been working to clasp this chance with both hands and has done an admirable job thus far.
Ime Udoka Praises Pritchard’s Impact
Udoka was in a tough spot when he took the Celtics job. Despite the team not looking like championship contenders to begin the year, Udoka had to balance developing the young talent on the roster while getting the veterans to buy into his offensive and defensive scheme.
Of course, when you’re trying to win games and prove yourself, both as a team and first-time head coach, player development takes a back seat. Aaron Nesmith has been the biggest casualty of Udoka’s predicament this season, but Pritchard wasn’t far behind in the list of players suffering from the first-year head coach’s propensity to lean on his veteran players.
For the second season in a row, Pritchard found himself having to earn his coach’s trust and claw his way into the rotation. Luckily, the Oregon native has never shied away from hard work and embraced what Udoka and the coaching staff asked of him.
“He’s obviously one of our best shooters. The trick for him was to learn to play off the ball more and understand that we have Marcus, Derek, Jayson, Jaylen that can all handle and create shots for him. At times, he’s a great screener and popper and he mixes it up and we bring some smaller matchups into it. So he’s done a great job of not just handling it but playing off the ball,” Udoka told the media following the Celtics victory over the Sacramento Kings on March 18.
Pritchard’s Numbers Prove His Value
Since February 14, Pritchard has participated in 13 games, averaging 16.5 minutes of playing time. The Celtics have won 10 of those 13 contests, and have looked vastly improved on the offensive end.
Of course, the offensive improvements can’t be tied to Pritchard’s sudden presence in the rotation. Jayson Tatum has been on an MVP level tear throughout that stretch, and Al Horford has suddenly found his shooting range. Yet, we can’t overlook the six-foot-one guard’s impact when he’s on the floor.
Payton Pritchard has made the 2nd-most 3-pointers on the Celtics over the past 10 games, and at a 46.3% clip.
Over his last 13 games, Pritchard is averaging 7.5 points, 2.6 dimes, and 2.1 rebounds per game, shooting 43.1% from deep and 50% from the field – including an impressive 10-point outing against the Golden State Warriors on March 16. The Oregon alumn has also proven valuable as an off-ball screener and on-ball facilitator, as his presence behind the arc forces defenses to comprise their structure in order to take away his shooting pockets.
While Pritchard will likely never be a starting-caliber guard in the NBA, he has the potential to be an elite secondary ball-handler and possibly even sixth man. The additional minutes the sophomore guard is currently being afforded will ensure he continues to get the reps he needs to improve his game and how he impacts opposing defenses. And luckily for the Celtics, they have him tied down for another two seasons, should they wish to exercise the team option in his contract.