Welcome to Boston, Payton Pritchard! – (Re-signed: 4yrs/$30M)

[Hal14]

Jay King just dropped a great article in the Athletic about Pritchard which is behind a paywall but if you can get to it, it's a pretty good read. For all the talk about his apparent lack of athleticism, in high school he was a shortstop and was a pretty mobile quarterback too who maybe could've gone D1 if he had wanted according to teammates of his who actually did. He's not Ja Morant but the kid is athletic. I really like his trajectory. When he finds his voice on this team, then I think we're gonna see some things. That's the key. A little soft-spoken in general and understandably so this season as a rookie. But once he finds his comfort in this system and if he's given the opportunity to command this team like a real floor general I think he will earn that opportunity in upcoming years. Danny said this kid was the best player in the Pac-10 his last 2 years. That's not an easy trick to pull off. Can he become a capable successor to Kemba as a starter coming off those high screen rolls and making plays? I think so.

Just because someone played baseball and football in high school, that doesn't mean they have above average athleticism on a basketball court. It doesn't work that way. Basketball athleticism is different than those other sports.

Also, that's nice that he was the best player in the Pac-10. But you could easily find a list of dozens (maybe even hundreds) of guys who were good college players but couldn't start for a good NBA team. Tyler Hansbrough, Mateen Cleaves, Khalid El-Amin, Brian Scalabrine to name a few..

And yet Pritchard HAS actually started for an NBA team. But you're right. He sucks.

1) Where did I say Pritchard sucks? Nowhere did I say that. Please don't put words in my mouth.
2) He's only started 2 games out of the 60 he's played in. Which means he's only started in. 0.03% of the games he's played in. That's nothing. For comparisons sake, Travis Knight started 19.7% of games he played in during his rookie year and he was playing center on a team with Shaquille O'Neal..
3) The 2 games Pritchard started, only reason he started was because both Smart and Kemba were both out. Don't make it seem like he is a starter for this team when we're at full strength
4) The 2 games where Pritchard started, the Celtics are 0-2. 1 of those losses we lost to the Pistons, who are 19-47, one of the worst teams in the league. The other game we lost to the Bulls, a team that is 26-39, they are out of the playoff picture and they didn't even have their best player Zach Lavine that game

[GoGreen]

Big fan of Payton. Think the kid has 20 ppg scorer written all over him in the future.

[Hal14]

If Kemba were the 26th pick and Pritchard were making 30M he’d be the starting point guard.

What a ridiculous hypothetical. Kemba is not a rookie, he's a veteran and 4 time all-star. Kemba was not the 26th pick, he was the no. 9 pick.

And Pritchard is not making $30 mil a year. He's making $2 mil a year.

[BK_2020]

He's trying to say the only reason Kemba starts and plays more minutes than PP is because he makes more money. It couldn't possibly be that Kemba is a better scorer, better passer, better ballhandler, and better defender.

[cloverleaf]

Just because someone played baseball and football in high school, that doesn't mean they have above average athleticism on a basketball court. It doesn't work that way. Basketball athleticism is different than those other sports.

Also, that's nice that he was the best player in the Pac-10. But you could easily find a list of dozens (maybe even hundreds) of guys who were good college players but couldn't start for a good NBA team. Tyler Hansbrough, Mateen Cleaves, Khalid El-Amin, Brian Scalabrine to name a few..

And yet Pritchard HAS actually started for an NBA team. But you're right. He sucks.

1) Where did I say Pritchard sucks? Nowhere did I say that. Please don't put words in my mouth.
2) He's only started 2 games out of the 60 he's played in. Which means he's only started in. 0.03% of the games he's played in. That's nothing. For comparisons sake, Travis Knight started 19.7% of games he played in during his rookie year and he was playing center on a team with Shaquille O'Neal..
3) The 2 games Pritchard started, only reason he started was because both Smart and Kemba were both out. Don't make it seem like he is a starter for this team when we're at full strength
4) The 2 games where Pritchard started, the Celtics are 0-2. 1 of those losses we lost to the Pistons, who are 19-47, one of the worst teams in the league. The other game we lost to the Bulls, a team that is 26-39, they are out of the playoff picture and they didn't even have their best player Zach Lavine that game

1) You gave PP a score of zero on what you classified as the key skills for an NBA PG (I paraphrase).
2) Two out of 60 is 3.33%, not 0.03%.
3) Yeah, I get it, you're saying PP wouldn't be designated as a regular NBA starter, not that he might not play as a fill-in starter. BTW I disagree with you and think he'd have been a fulltime starter in coming years on some (bad) teams this season.
4) PP was a +8 in his start against Detroit in February and a neutral +0 in his start against Chicago in April, when he also scored 14 points on 5-8 shooting, including 2-3 from 3. In that game all other C's starters (who included Semi and Tristan, to give you an idea of the C's chances) were in the negative in their +/-.

[bucknersrevenge]

Just because someone played baseball and football in high school, that doesn't mean they have above average athleticism on a basketball court. It doesn't work that way. Basketball athleticism is different than those other sports.

Also, that's nice that he was the best player in the Pac-10. But you could easily find a list of dozens (maybe even hundreds) of guys who were good college players but couldn't start for a good NBA team. Tyler Hansbrough, Mateen Cleaves, Khalid El-Amin, Brian Scalabrine to name a few..

And yet Pritchard HAS actually started for an NBA team. But you're right. He sucks.

1) Where did I say Pritchard sucks? Nowhere did I say that. Please don't put words in my mouth.
2) He's only started 2 games out of the 60 he's played in. Which means he's only started in. 0.03% of the games he's played in. That's nothing. For comparisons sake, Travis Knight started 19.7% of games he played in during his rookie year and he was playing center on a team with Shaquille O'Neal..
3) The 2 games Pritchard started, only reason he started was because both Smart and Kemba were both out. Don't make it seem like he is a starter for this team when we're at full strength
4) The 2 games where Pritchard started, the Celtics are 0-2. 1 of those losses we lost to the Pistons, who are 19-47, one of the worst teams in the league. The other game we lost to the Bulls, a team that is 26-39, they are out of the playoff picture and they didn't even have their best player Zach Lavine that game

Not putting words in your mouth but careful. Your slip is showing a bit. This is becoming kind a dogwhistle thing for you. Someone says something positive about Pritchard. You come running in with your agenda. We get it okay. Yam Madar- future All-Star. Payton Pritchard: MAYBE decent bench guy. He's a rookie. Hal. He's allowed to be a rookie on a new team with Kemba Walker and Marcus Smart ahead of him.

[Hal14]

And yet Pritchard HAS actually started for an NBA team. But you're right. He sucks.

1) Where did I say Pritchard sucks? Nowhere did I say that. Please don't put words in my mouth.
2) He's only started 2 games out of the 60 he's played in. Which means he's only started in. 0.03% of the games he's played in. That's nothing. For comparisons sake, Travis Knight started 19.7% of games he played in during his rookie year and he was playing center on a team with Shaquille O'Neal..
3) The 2 games Pritchard started, only reason he started was because both Smart and Kemba were both out. Don't make it seem like he is a starter for this team when we're at full strength
4) The 2 games where Pritchard started, the Celtics are 0-2. 1 of those losses we lost to the Pistons, who are 19-47, one of the worst teams in the league. The other game we lost to the Bulls, a team that is 26-39, they are out of the playoff picture and they didn't even have their best player Zach Lavine that game

Not putting words in your mouth but careful. Your slip is showing a bit. This is becoming kind a dogwhistle thing for you. Someone says something positive about Pritchard. You come running in with your agenda. We get it okay. Yam Madar- future All-Star. Payton Pritchard: MAYBE decent bench guy. He's a rookie. Hal. He's allowed to be a rookie on a new team with Kemba Walker and Marcus Smart ahead of him.

You absolutely put words in my mouth. I never said Pritchard sucks. I never said Madar is a future all-star.

I've got no agenda. You sound paranoid

[cloverleaf]

1) Where did I say Pritchard sucks? Nowhere did I say that. Please don't put words in my mouth.
2) He's only started 2 games out of the 60 he's played in. Which means he's only started in. 0.03% of the games he's played in. That's nothing. For comparisons sake, Travis Knight started 19.7% of games he played in during his rookie year and he was playing center on a team with Shaquille O'Neal..
3) The 2 games Pritchard started, only reason he started was because both Smart and Kemba were both out. Don't make it seem like he is a starter for this team when we're at full strength
4) The 2 games where Pritchard started, the Celtics are 0-2. 1 of those losses we lost to the Pistons, who are 19-47, one of the worst teams in the league. The other game we lost to the Bulls, a team that is 26-39, they are out of the playoff picture and they didn't even have their best player Zach Lavine that game

Not putting words in your mouth but careful. Your slip is showing a bit. This is becoming kind a dogwhistle thing for you. Someone says something positive about Pritchard. You come running in with your agenda. We get it okay. Yam Madar- future All-Star. Payton Pritchard: MAYBE decent bench guy. He's a rookie. Hal. He's allowed to be a rookie on a new team with Kemba Walker and Marcus Smart ahead of him.

You absolutely put words in my mouth. I never said Pritchard sucks. I never said Madar is a future all-star.

I've got no agenda. You sound paranoid

You have as good as said those things on the threads about the two players. I don't know if Yam is your cousin or just your binky, but the dynamic BR points out is clear. I hope they both have great Celtics careers and play well for next year's very successful team.

[bucknersrevenge]

1) Where did I say Pritchard sucks? Nowhere did I say that. Please don't put words in my mouth.
2) He's only started 2 games out of the 60 he's played in. Which means he's only started in. 0.03% of the games he's played in. That's nothing. For comparisons sake, Travis Knight started 19.7% of games he played in during his rookie year and he was playing center on a team with Shaquille O'Neal..
3) The 2 games Pritchard started, only reason he started was because both Smart and Kemba were both out. Don't make it seem like he is a starter for this team when we're at full strength
4) The 2 games where Pritchard started, the Celtics are 0-2. 1 of those losses we lost to the Pistons, who are 19-47, one of the worst teams in the league. The other game we lost to the Bulls, a team that is 26-39, they are out of the playoff picture and they didn't even have their best player Zach Lavine that game

Not putting words in your mouth but careful. Your slip is showing a bit. This is becoming kind a dogwhistle thing for you. Someone says something positive about Pritchard. You come running in with your agenda. We get it okay. Yam Madar- future All-Star. Payton Pritchard: MAYBE decent bench guy. He's a rookie. Hal. He's allowed to be a rookie on a new team with Kemba Walker and Marcus Smart ahead of him.

You absolutely put words in my mouth. I never said Pritchard sucks. I never said Madar is a future all-star.

I've got no agenda. You sound paranoid

LOL Okay, if you say so. Just remember how this all started. I make a fairly innocuous post about a puff piece by Jay King about Pritchard, his journey and his prospects. No outlandish proclamations. Just, "he's got a good future when he finds his voice". You come running in here with your hair on fire to as quickly as possible dispel and subdue any attempt to complement Pritchard for a good season so far and or any potential. Meanwhile, let's compare Yam Madar to Hall of Famers before he's even stepped foot in this country. And if this was the first time you did this, it probably wouldn't be as funny. Just sayin. Your slip is showin bro.

[Hal14]

Not putting words in your mouth but careful. Your slip is showing a bit. This is becoming kind a dogwhistle thing for you. Someone says something positive about Pritchard. You come running in with your agenda. We get it okay. Yam Madar- future All-Star. Payton Pritchard: MAYBE decent bench guy. He's a rookie. Hal. He's allowed to be a rookie on a new team with Kemba Walker and Marcus Smart ahead of him.

You absolutely put words in my mouth. I never said Pritchard sucks. I never said Madar is a future all-star.

I've got no agenda. You sound paranoid

You have as good as said those things on the threads about the two players. I don't know if Yam is your cousin or just your binky, but the dynamic BR points out is clear. I hope they both have great Celtics careers and play well for next year's very successful team.

I haven't said those things at all, so either you're misinterpreting things or your reading comprehension needs work.

I hope they both have great Celtics careers as well.

lol, what makes you think I am Madar's cousin? I have no agenda. No dog in the fight. Here's my objective comparison of the 2 guys:

Pritchard = more experienced with 4 yrs college ball + 1 year NBA compared to 3 years playing professionally overseas for Madar

Pritchard = stronger build

Pritchard = safer choice. Let's be real here. Pritchard has been a solid rotation player all year for the Celtics. He's had some big games scoring the basketball, he's been tough, fearless and shown good chemistry with Time Lord on quite a few lobs. You know what you're going to get from him and for the most part, it's been really good, especially for a rookie. Madar is more of an unknown. How will he do in the NBA? Will he even join the team next year? How will he adjust to being in a new part of the world, the grind of the NBA season? How will he adjust to the bright lights, the pressure, the higher competition? Maybe he'll be awesome, but maybe he'll be a bust. We just don't know for sure.

Both players = very good shooters. This season Pritchard shooting 42.4% from 3, Madar is 38.7%. Pritchard shooting 50% from 2 point range, 48.5% for Madar. FTs, 90..7% for Pritchard, 85.6% for Madar. So across the board a slight edge for Pritchard. But keep in mind that Pritchard is doing this against NBA competition, Madar is facing lesser competition so Madar's numbers might go down a little in the NBA. With that being said, Pritchard is what, like the 6th? 7th scoring option on the Celtics? Teams are not focusing on Pritchard, teams are focusing on Tatum/Brown/Kemba/Smart/Fournier/Time Lord so Pritchard often times is left open whereas Madar (I believe) is his team's best player and especially since he got picked in the NBA draft you know opposing teams are focused on shutting down Madar so that does make it so his shots are tougher. Also, last year at age 19 Madar shot 26% from 3. That jumped to 39% this season at age 20. That's an insane jump! Considering how young he still is, odds are he will keep getting better too. Also, if you break down the film (which I did in one of these threads) Madar clearly has a quicker release when shooting. Especially when shooting off the catch, with pritchard you see him facing the teammate who's passing him the ball as the ball comes towards him, he then gathers it in, then squares up to the hoop and then shoots it. Madar does it all in 1 fluid motion, so as the ball is coming towards him he's already squaring up towards the basket, and he catches it he goes right up into his shot. This allows Madar to get shots off that Pritchard likely won't be able to (not to mention Madar being 2 inches taller + gets more elevation when he shoots) also allows Madar to get shots off that pritchard probably wouldn't be able to. Which is why you often see Pritchard take shots from 2, or even 3+ feet behind the line since otherwise (with his slower release, shorter hight, less elevation on his shot) he would either get blocked or would just not attempt the shot. Still, bottom line is Pritchard does have slightly higher shooting percentages across the board and doing it vs NBA competition. So for shooting, all call it a wash.

Both players = tough, scrappy, gritty, fearless

Madar = 3 years younger, so more room to grow/develop, higher upside

Madar = better handle

Madar = much better defender, a real ball hawk out there, wreaking havoc on D, picking up his man and pressuring in the back court, using long arms and timing to block shots, uses height + instincts + timing to get steals and deflections. His defense is probably the best part of his game. Has shown ability to get steals/deflections/blocked shots even when he's had to switch onto much bigger offensive players. Pritchard has been a liability on D and is one of our worst defenders, no question.

Madar = 2 inches taller

Madar = more of a take control floor general, more of a pure PG who can really run an offense compared to Pritchard who is more of a spot up shooter who at times shows flashes of being able to be a true PG but often looks to quickly pass the ball off to a teammate as soon as he crosses half court - or even while he's still in the back court.

Madar = more of a high energy, high motor type guy compared to Pritchard who sometimes seems a little too calm/relaxed out there, sometimes seems to be moving in slow motion but also has flashes where he will all of a sudden go all out on a particular play

Madar = higher athleticism

Madar = a step quicker

Madar = slightly better passer

If you total it up:
Pritchard = 3 points (experience, safer choice, stronger build)
Madar = 9 points (passing, athleticism, defense, height, take control floor general, higher energy/motor, ball handling, quickness, younger/more room to grow/develop
Categories where it's a wash = 2 (shooting, scrappiness/toughness/fearlessness)

So a pretty significant advantage for Madar. So all I'm saying is that IMO if we bring over Madar this summer he has a chance to beat out Pritchard for the backup PG job behind Kemba for next season.

But, given how well Pritchard is played this year, Madar being younger and will need to adjust to NBA game, I can also see a scenario where Pritchard is the backup PG next year, Madar is 3rd string and you slowly ramp up Madar's minutes, maybe even give him some time in the G league.

However, long term - it's definitely debatable which one has the higher chance of being a really good starting PG in this league on a contending team - I'd say Madar has the higher probability but like you said, he has yet to step foot in the US so hard to know for sure..

[zoyathedestroya]

Watch on YouTube

[Hal14]

Not putting words in your mouth but careful. Your slip is showing a bit. This is becoming kind a dogwhistle thing for you. Someone says something positive about Pritchard. You come running in with your agenda. We get it okay. Yam Madar- future All-Star. Payton Pritchard: MAYBE decent bench guy. He's a rookie. Hal. He's allowed to be a rookie on a new team with Kemba Walker and Marcus Smart ahead of him.

You absolutely put words in my mouth. I never said Pritchard sucks. I never said Madar is a future all-star.

I've got no agenda. You sound paranoid

LOL Okay, if you say so. Just remember how this all started. I make a fairly innocuous post about a puff piece by Jay King about Pritchard, his journey and his prospects. No outlandish proclamations. Just, "he's got a good future when he finds his voice". You come running in here with your hair on fire to as quickly as possible dispel and subdue any attempt to complement Pritchard for a good season so far and or any potential. Meanwhile, let's compare Yam Madar to Hall of Famers before he's even stepped foot in this country. And if this was the first time you did this, it probably wouldn't be as funny. Just sayin. Your slip is showin bro.

1) lol. My hair was on fire? Seriously? Do you even know what hair on fire means? It means that I was running around my house all crazy, panicking, stomping around, huffing and puffing and acting all flustered. Literally hair on fire means my body language. This is a message board. You can't see anyone's body language. It's just words on a computer screen. As I sit here typing this right now, you have no idea what my body language is like, if I'm pacing around or sitting on a couch. So the fact that you would say I was "running in here with your hair on fire", means you are really reaching, lol.

2) If I'm recalling correctly, the article you posted about Pritchard, you specifically pointed out a part that talked about how he played shortstop in high school and also was a standout football player in high school too, and you were trying to say that because of that, he is some amazing athlete. I figured you were posting that in response to my analysis comparing Pritchard to the NBA's top 22 point guards where I said Pritchard does not have above average athleticism for an NBA player. So I figured you were posting that to try and prove me wrong - which is why I simply pointed out that just NBA athleticism is much different than other sports and just because someone played football/baseball in high school, that doesn't really say anything about whether they have above average athleticism on a basketball court. Tom Glavine was a hall of fame pitcher and also really good hockey player. Would he have above average athleticism if he played in the NBA in the 90s? Maybe, maybe not. But it would have been dumb for someone to just say "oh he was an MLB pitcher and standout hockey player too, so that must definitely mean he has above average athleticism on a basketball court compared to other NBA players". That's it. That's all I said. You could've just left it at that. But you seem really sensitive when it comes to Pritchard so you just keep coming at me with these accusations that I have an agenda.

3). My slip is showing? lol. Care to explain what you mean by that? What, you think I'm secretly Madar's cousin like that other guy? Nope. Just a Celtics fan and a basketball junkie who has over a decade's worth of experience evaluating basketball prospects at the high school/prep school/college level for multiple media outlets, including my own website which was consistently visited by college coaches and a recruiting site which is run by a guy who went on to cover college hoops for espn.com

Peace

[bucknersrevenge]

You absolutely put words in my mouth. I never said Pritchard sucks. I never said Madar is a future all-star.

I've got no agenda. You sound paranoid

LOL Okay, if you say so. Just remember how this all started. I make a fairly innocuous post about a puff piece by Jay King about Pritchard, his journey and his prospects. No outlandish proclamations. Just, "he's got a good future when he finds his voice". You come running in here with your hair on fire to as quickly as possible dispel and subdue any attempt to complement Pritchard for a good season so far and or any potential. Meanwhile, let's compare Yam Madar to Hall of Famers before he's even stepped foot in this country. And if this was the first time you did this, it probably wouldn't be as funny. Just sayin. Your slip is showin bro.

1) lol. My hair was on fire? Seriously? Do you even know what hair on fire means? It means that I was running around my house all crazy, panicking, stomping around, huffing and puffing and acting all flustered. Literally hair on fire means my body language. This is a message board. You can't see anyone's body language. It's just words on a computer screen. As I sit here typing this right now, you have no idea what my body language is like, if I'm pacing around or sitting on a couch. So the fact that you would say I was "running in here with your hair on fire", means you are really reaching, lol.

2) If I'm recalling correctly, the article you posted about Pritchard, you specifically pointed out a part that talked about how he played shortstop in high school and also was a standout football player in high school too, and you were trying to say that because of that, he is some amazing athlete. I figured you were posting that in response to my analysis comparing Pritchard to the NBA's top 22 point guards where I said Pritchard does not have above average athleticism for an NBA player. So I figured you were posting that to try and prove me wrong - which is why I simply pointed out that just NBA athleticism is much different than other sports and just because someone played football/baseball in high school, that doesn't really say anything about whether they have above average athleticism on a basketball court. Tom Glavine was a hall of fame pitcher and also really good hockey player. Would he have above average athleticism if he played in the NBA in the 90s? Maybe, maybe not. But it would have been dumb for someone to just say back "oh he was an MLB pitcher and standout hockey player too, so that must definitely mean he has above average athleticism on a basketball court compared to other NBA players". That's it. That's all I said. You could've just let it at that. But you seem really sensitive when it comes to Pritchard.

3). My slip is showing? lol. Care to explain what you mean by that? What, you think I'm secretly. Madar's cousin like that other guy? Nope. Just a Celtics fan and a basketball junkie who has over a decade's worth of experience evaluating basketball prospects at the high school/prep school/college level for multiple media outlets, including my own website which was consistently visited by college coaches and a recruiting site which is run by a guy who went on to cover college hoops for espn.com

Peace

Hey I don't have a decade in the can evaluating prospects for media outlets or a recruiting site that run by a guy who now covers hoops for ESPN.










But I did stay at a Holiday Inn Express last night so...

[24istheLAW]

Jay King just dropped a great article in the Athletic about Pritchard which is behind a paywall but if you can get to it, it's a pretty good read. For all the talk about his apparent lack of athleticism, in high school he was a shortstop and was a pretty mobile quarterback too who maybe could've gone D1 if he had wanted according to teammates of his who actually did. He's not Ja Morant but the kid is athletic. I really like his trajectory. When he finds his voice on this team, then I think we're gonna see some things. That's the key. A little soft-spoken in general and understandably so this season as a rookie. But once he finds his comfort in this system and if he's given the opportunity to command this team like a real floor general I think he will earn that opportunity in upcoming years. Danny said this kid was the best player in the Pac-10 his last 2 years. That's not an easy trick to pull off. Can he become a capable successor to Kemba as a starter coming off those high screen rolls and making plays? I think so.

I think most NBA guys who have an orthodox body type for football could have played D1.

Basketball is just at the top of the ladder for young American athletes by far. Lots of room for individual glory, less grueling physically.

There's a lot I'd bet on playing sundays too. Old friend Terry Rozier, De'Aaron Fox, Morant, Westbrook, John Wall...

[Hal14]

Jay King just dropped a great article in the Athletic about Pritchard which is behind a paywall but if you can get to it, it's a pretty good read. For all the talk about his apparent lack of athleticism, in high school he was a shortstop and was a pretty mobile quarterback too who maybe could've gone D1 if he had wanted according to teammates of his who actually did. He's not Ja Morant but the kid is athletic. I really like his trajectory. When he finds his voice on this team, then I think we're gonna see some things. That's the key. A little soft-spoken in general and understandably so this season as a rookie. But once he finds his comfort in this system and if he's given the opportunity to command this team like a real floor general I think he will earn that opportunity in upcoming years. Danny said this kid was the best player in the Pac-10 his last 2 years. That's not an easy trick to pull off. Can he become a capable successor to Kemba as a starter coming off those high screen rolls and making plays? I think so.

I think most NBA guys who have an orthodox body type for football could have played D1.

Basketball is just at the top of the ladder for young American athletes by far. Lots of room for individual glory, less grueling physically.

There's a lot I'd bet on playing sundays too. Old friend Terry Rozier, De'Aaron Fox, Morant, Westbrook, John Wall...

Smart, Rozier and Ojeleye would probably be good football players. Grant too. Westbrook probably too..

Smart for sure, though.

[zoyathedestroya]

Puts IT's recent 80+ pts in a pickup game in persepective.

Watch on YouTube

I think this is the reason he missed Cs' 4th SL game.

[LarryBirdsFingr]

And yet Pritchard HAS actually started for an NBA team. But you're right. He sucks.

1) Where did I say Pritchard sucks? Nowhere did I say that. Please don't put words in my mouth.
2) He's only started 2 games out of the 60 he's played in. Which means he's only started in. 0.03% of the games he's played in. That's nothing. For comparisons sake, Travis Knight started 19.7% of games he played in during his rookie year and he was playing center on a team with Shaquille O'Neal..
3) The 2 games Pritchard started, only reason he started was because both Smart and Kemba were both out. Don't make it seem like he is a starter for this team when we're at full strength
4) The 2 games where Pritchard started, the Celtics are 0-2. 1 of those losses we lost to the Pistons, who are 19-47, one of the worst teams in the league. The other game we lost to the Bulls, a team that is 26-39, they are out of the playoff picture and they didn't even have their best player Zach Lavine that game

Not putting words in your mouth but careful. Your slip is showing a bit. This is becoming kind a dogwhistle thing for you. Someone says something positive about Pritchard. You come running in with your agenda. We get it okay. Yam Madar- future All-Star. Payton Pritchard: MAYBE decent bench guy. He's a rookie. Hal. He's allowed to be a rookie on a new team with Kemba Walker and Marcus Smart ahead of him.

Pritchard will have a very meaningful nba career.

Yam will never play more than 100 minutes in the NBA.

RINSED.

[LarryBirdsFingr]

You absolutely put words in my mouth. I never said Pritchard sucks. I never said Madar is a future all-star.

I've got no agenda. You sound paranoid

You have as good as said those things on the threads about the two players. I don't know if Yam is your cousin or just your binky, but the dynamic BR points out is clear. I hope they both have great Celtics careers and play well for next year's very successful team.

I haven't said those things at all, so either you're misinterpreting things or your reading comprehension needs work.

I hope they both have great Celtics careers as well.

lol, what makes you think I am Madar's cousin? I have no agenda. No dog in the fight. Here's my objective comparison of the 2 guys:

Pritchard = more experienced with 4 yrs college ball + 1 year NBA compared to 3 years playing professionally overseas for Madar

Pritchard = stronger build

Pritchard = safer choice. Let's be real here. Pritchard has been a solid rotation player all year for the Celtics. He's had some big games scoring the basketball, he's been tough, fearless and shown good chemistry with Time Lord on quite a few lobs. You know what you're going to get from him and for the most part, it's been really good, especially for a rookie. Madar is more of an unknown. How will he do in the NBA? Will he even join the team next year? How will he adjust to being in a new part of the world, the grind of the NBA season? How will he adjust to the bright lights, the pressure, the higher competition? Maybe he'll be awesome, but maybe he'll be a bust. We just don't know for sure.

Both players = very good shooters. This season Pritchard shooting 42.4% from 3, Madar is 38.7%. Pritchard shooting 50% from 2 point range, 48.5% for Madar. FTs, 90..7% for Pritchard, 85.6% for Madar. So across the board a slight edge for Pritchard. But keep in mind that Pritchard is doing this against NBA competition, Madar is facing lesser competition so Madar's numbers might go down a little in the NBA. With that being said, Pritchard is what, like the 6th? 7th scoring option on the Celtics? Teams are not focusing on Pritchard, teams are focusing on Tatum/Brown/Kemba/Smart/Fournier/Time Lord so Pritchard often times is left open whereas Madar (I believe) is his team's best player and especially since he got picked in the NBA draft you know opposing teams are focused on shutting down Madar so that does make it so his shots are tougher. Also, last year at age 19 Madar shot 26% from 3. That jumped to 39% this season at age 20. That's an insane jump! Considering how young he still is, odds are he will keep getting better too. Also, if you break down the film (which I did in one of these threads) Madar clearly has a quicker release when shooting. Especially when shooting off the catch, with pritchard you see him facing the teammate who's passing him the ball as the ball comes towards him, he then gathers it in, then squares up to the hoop and then shoots it. Madar does it all in 1 fluid motion, so as the ball is coming towards him he's already squaring up towards the basket, and he catches it he goes right up into his shot. This allows Madar to get shots off that Pritchard likely won't be able to (not to mention Madar being 2 inches taller + gets more elevation when he shoots) also allows Madar to get shots off that pritchard probably wouldn't be able to. Which is why you often see Pritchard take shots from 2, or even 3+ feet behind the line since otherwise (with his slower release, shorter hight, less elevation on his shot) he would either get blocked or would just not attempt the shot. Still, bottom line is Pritchard does have slightly higher shooting percentages across the board and doing it vs NBA competition. So for shooting, all call it a wash.

Both players = tough, scrappy, gritty, fearless

Madar = 3 years younger, so more room to grow/develop, higher upside

Madar = better handle

Madar = much better defender, a real ball hawk out there, wreaking havoc on D, picking up his man and pressuring in the back court, using long arms and timing to block shots, uses height + instincts + timing to get steals and deflections. His defense is probably the best part of his game. Has shown ability to get steals/deflections/blocked shots even when he's had to switch onto much bigger offensive players. Pritchard has been a liability on D and is one of our worst defenders, no question.

Madar = 2 inches taller

Madar = more of a take control floor general, more of a pure PG who can really run an offense compared to Pritchard who is more of a spot up shooter who at times shows flashes of being able to be a true PG but often looks to quickly pass the ball off to a teammate as soon as he crosses half court - or even while he's still in the back court.

Madar = more of a high energy, high motor type guy compared to Pritchard who sometimes seems a little too calm/relaxed out there, sometimes seems to be moving in slow motion but also has flashes where he will all of a sudden go all out on a particular play

Madar = higher athleticism

Madar = a step quicker

Madar = slightly better passer

If you total it up:
Pritchard = 3 points (experience, safer choice, stronger build)
Madar = 9 points (passing, athleticism, defense, height, take control floor general, higher energy/motor, ball handling, quickness, younger/more room to grow/develop
Categories where it's a wash = 2 (shooting, scrappiness/toughness/fearlessness)

So a pretty significant advantage for Madar. So all I'm saying is that IMO if we bring over Madar this summer he has a chance to beat out Pritchard for the backup PG job behind Kemba for next season.

But, given how well Pritchard is played this year, Madar being younger and will need to adjust to NBA game, I can also see a scenario where Pritchard is the backup PG next year, Madar is 3rd string and you slowly ramp up Madar's minutes, maybe even give him some time in the G league.

However, long term - it's definitely debatable which one has the higher chance of being a really good starting PG in this league on a contending team - I'd say Madar has the higher probability but like you said, he has yet to step foot in the US so hard to know for sure..

Pritchard: got permission to go play ball with his friends instead of play in summer league that he was torching.

Madar: couldn't stay on the floor for more than 20 minutes.

/end of discussion

[ParticleMan]

I like Yam but he is miles behind Pritchard.

This idea of comparing height, quickness, shooting % like this is some kind of NBA2K is pretty silly. Just watch them play. Yam is not an NBA player right now. Pritchard is a genuine NBA rotation player, and he would start for some teams.

I like Yam's potential, despite a bit of a disappointing SL. But let's not get ahead of ourselves, he is nowhere close to where Pritchard is right now.

[chakdaddy]

Madar is younger with upside and no particular reason to expect him to fulfill it. That's why he's a 2nd round stash, not a first rounder in the rotation.