There was no shortage of Payton Pritchard highlights Tuesday night. Enough so that Jaylen Brown called him ‘the BOK’ after Pritchard created the Boston Rally with a 17-point deficit in the second half for a 116-111 victory over the Indiana Pacers.
But the moment the house hammered home why Pritchard so quickly earned the trust of Celtics coach Brad Stevens by breaking a rookie that delayed many first-year players, it came during a new cameo in the early season in which Pritchard showed exactly. why he has the nickname FastPP.
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With Boston’s four-point lead with less than five minutes of play, Pritchard accelerated past Victor Oladipo, and when Myles Turner shuffled to help, the rookie lobbed the ball to the edge for Tristan Thompson. Alas, TT left the field a bit late for PP’s lob, and TJ Warren was able to hide the ball for a steal.
Pritchard’s heels were essentially on the baseline when Oladipo broke out from above the loading circle. With a series of powerful steps, Pritchard narrowed the gap through the lane, and when Oladipo slowed down his approach to the basket, the rookie jumped and unleashed the ball.
Marcus Smart tracked it down. The action returned to the other side, with the ball quickly back in Pritchard’s hands, and though he had few figures, Pritchard’s threat to attack the basket in transition rocked three defenders on his side of the floor. . The rookie zipped the ball to Smart for an open three-pointer and a much more comfortable seven-point cushion.
Pritchard finished with 10 points on 4-of-8 shooting with five rebounds, five assistants and the key theft. He had three turnovers, but to the great delight of Brad Stevens, it was not caused by accidentally stepping out of bounds during an offensive possession.
Four games in his NBA career, Pritchard, the no. 26-choice in the draft of November, is fifth in total of the minutes played (88). He recorded more floor time than two of Boston’s most important rotation players during their bubble in Grant Williams (61 minutes) and Daniel Theis (86). He’s just ahead of veteran acquisition Jeff Teague, who he would be ahead of him on the points screen depth chart coming into the season.
That is, Pritchard beat away any reasonable expectation. Sure, because he was a four-year-old player in Oregon, he made himself a little more NBA-ready than some of the teens the Celtics have caught in recent years. He’s older than Jayson Tatum. But to have him move so early in the rotation, to have Brown call him the BOK, and Tatum playfully call him ‘8 Mile’ is still remarkable.
While Kemba Walker is on the sidelines, there will be suggestions that Pritchard should even be considered to start duties in petty line-ups, especially if Stevens moves away from the two-way variation he used to start the year. Ultimately, it does not matter what Pritchard’s role is, because if he will have an impact on the win as he has, he will play an important role in this team.
The Celtics will not win Tuesday night without Pritchard’s game-changing energy.
“Payton came in with confidence,” Brown said. ‘I definitely needed a spark off the bench and Payton was everything and anything for us tonight. We’ll need more guys to keep acting. Excellent guy. Excellent work by Payton Pritchard, man. Kid can play and we look forward to him and other guys performing in the future as well. ”
Before Tuesday’s game, Stevens playfully nodded to the rookie about his tendency to step on the sidelines early in his pro career. Though he does his best to prevent the Pritchard excitement from ballooning too quickly.
“He’s a good player. He will be a good player for a long time to come, ‘Stevens said. “I do not want to overdo it. The rookie hype train can sometimes be a good thing and sometimes a bad thing. He just needs to keep playing, keep improving, do his best and try to catch the ball.
“That’s the No. 1 goal. If he can go an entire game without being off limits, it’s a win.”
Well, get Tuesday night in several winning columns. But it turns out that the content remains not the biggest contribution from Pritchard. He changed the whole complexion of the game – with the help of fellow bank robber Robert Williams – by bringing energy and effort after a terrible start in the third quarter left the Celtics staring at a 17-point hole.
Pritchard even won a fourth quarter with a privileged group. He has now had several games with a crunch-time lineups. It speaks volumes about the confidence the team has in him so early on.
“If I have your coach and also my teammates confidence, it means the world to me, because it can allow me to keep growing as a player and be able to help this team if I can,” Pritchard said. , I want to be able to give a spark, get the team going or help the team get more lead.
“I’m going to win everything. That’s why we’re playing this game. I want to win and want to help as much as possible to achieve a victory. So, just try to do it tonight.”
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Pritchard definitely has a little bit of cleverness in him, especially if he’s going to yield that kind of wins. Danny Ainge drafted a younger version of himself and Pritchard helped fill a clear gap with Walker who was off the track to start the year.
Sorry, coach, the rookie hype train is already approaching high speed. Luckily for the Celtics, Pritchard does not look like the type who will get too much content based on a little early praise. Yes, even GOATS need to work in this team.