Getty Images Payton Pritchard of the Celtics
After Boston Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens revamped his roster at the NBA trade deadline, Payton Pritchard knew there was an opportunity to cement himself a permanent role in head coach Ime Udoka’s rotation.
Gradually, Pritchard provided offensive sparks off the bench in February but had trouble finding consistency on offense.
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For example, the second-year guard scored 19 and 14 points in a back-to-back set on the road against the Detroit Pistons and Indiana Pacers. He connected on 7-of-13 of his 3-point attempts, then, mustered up a combined 14 points in the following four outings.
The Celtics, who went 4-0 throughout the stretch, didn’t need Payton’s 3-point touch, which went a combined 4-of-12, to get it done. However, this past week, his offense turned things up a notch, which led to an incredible feat over the weekend that no other Celtic has ever accomplished before.
Payton Pritchard Scores 4+ 3-Pointers in Consecutive Games
Pritchard became the first Celtics player to make at least four 3-pointers in two consecutive games. After scoring 14 points on 5-of-5 attempts from the floor, including 4-of-4 from behind the arc against the Sacramento Kings, Payton scored 17 while connecting on 6-of-6 shots from the floor, including 5-of-5 from 3 in Boston’s 124-104 blowout win against the Denver Nuggets, Sunday night.
“People want to look at stats and numbers, but at the beginning of the year, I played sometimes at the very end of games and different minutes,” Pritchard said after Sunday’s win against the Nuggets. “So, like I said before, my job’s to come in and be ready. Knockdown 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. Keep earning more trust from the coaches and do that.”
According to Celtics.com’s Taylor Snow, Prichard’s only the fourth player in NBA history to make at least four threes in back-to-back games. Connecting on 1.9 threes a game, Pritchard’s shooting 51.5% from behind the arc in March.
Payton Pritchard just became the 4th player in NBA history (and 1st Celtic) to make at least four 3-pointers without a miss in consecutive games
4-4 @ Sacramento
5-5 @ Denver
“In college, I played with really good players, so I learned how to play off the ball with them and have the ball,” Pritchard said. “So, I definitely learned it a little bit more in the league because you’re playing with Jayson (Tatum) and Jaylen (Brown) — they’re superstars. I’m trying to find ways to help them out.”
Payton Pritchard is ‘Just Trying to Take Care of Business’
Former Celtic Josh Richardson, who connected on 44.3% of his 3-pointers this year, per Basketball-Reference.com, was traded to the San Antonio Spurs, leaving a void on offense. And, in a separate deal, Dennis Schroder’s move to the Houston Rockets paved the way for an uptick in Pritchard’s minutes per game.
Now, as the regular season winds down, he’s making the most of his opportunity and carving out a role that could be vital to the Celtics’ place in the Eastern Conference standings.
“We’re just trying to take care of business,” Pritchard added. “Start the road trip off right, and we were looking forward to playing the Warriors and taking care of business on the first night. And then, in SAC, come out (the same); we’re just clicking.”
Monday, the Celtics will close out their four-game west coast road trip against the Thunder at Oklahoma City.
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