Welcome to Boston, Payton Pritchard!

[shackles10]

New hot take:

PP = new Isaiah Thomas

I thought the same thing watching the game and then Drew and Scal mentioned he is the first bench player to have 4 20 pt games in a row since IT in 2015.

What an incredible development. Better defender, better rebounder, less good as a playmaker and less explosive as a finisher. Better 3 pt shooter. Has the same confidence and swagger. I didn’t see this coming but the team now has a big 7.

Love IT, but he wouldn't be "IT" in today's NBA. Too much switching, picking and hunting of mismatches now. It really wasn't like ago he was here, but so much has changed. With his current success, I think it's coming to Pritchard in the most organic way conducive to winning with him coming off the bench. He's not hunted as much, he's able to have a higher usage percentage compared to sliding him into the Jrue 5th start role, and we can play him more and less based on the matchups. You make him a starter and he's gotta play 30+ every night regardless of matchup or what's the point.

[bigfoot_cryptozoology]

Read on Twitter

[phincsfan]

We've seen Pre-Season P
Now we're seeing Regular season P
All we need now is Playoff P. And the half court shots in the playoffs don't count.

[bubbleball]

Watch on YouTube

video mentions some interesting per possession stats to highlight just how ridiculous Payton's been playing so far. That contract looks better with every passing day

[phincsfan]

The big test will be his playoff performance. He ended the regular season on fire last year but teams schemed very well against him in the playoffs. I'm not knocking him, it's a fact. All his numbers were up in March and April going into the playoffs. Teams made a concerted effort not to allow him to have an impact.

In an 82 game season teams will have a gameplan, try to execute it and if it does it does and if it doesn't it doesn't. Move onto the next city. In the playoffs you have gameplans for an entire series and you make adjustments accordingly. Defensively they went at him and were effective against him. Offensively they played up on him alot.

The way he is playing though I think he has taken it to another level and he knows what he needed to work on and he did just that. He doesn't have to be a key to winning in the playoffs but if he plays like this and Jrue turns into playoff Jrue They're unbeatable. No team in the league can hang with this team in a 7 game series. Regular season flops will happen, but those teams cannot beat this team 4 games in a series. Ain't happening.

[ConstableGeneva]

[playa-hater]

This is/may be one of my biggest pet Peeves about Coach IME and Joe. They had PP. and No he didn't just suddenly improve. Literally everyone here knows I have been posting yelling debating that PP can be so good. Finally he has a real opportunity, not some random play then sit for a few games. And look how good he is.. All the signs were there. and so many did not see. So happy for my little PP!!

[ConstableGeneva]

This is/may be one of my biggest pet Peeves about Coach IME and Joe. They had PP. and No he didn't just suddenly improve. Literally everyone here knows I have been posting yelling debating that PP can be so good. Finally he has a real opportunity, not some random play then sit for a few games. And look how good he is.. All the signs were there. and so many did not see. So happy for my little PP!!

He was never playing over Smart, White, and Brogdon during Joe's 1st year. Moving off Smart + Brogdon gave him an opportunity for real minutes + more shots/touches.

[playa-hater]

This is/may be one of my biggest pet Peeves about Coach IME and Joe. They had PP. and No he didn't just suddenly improve. Literally everyone here knows I have been posting yelling debating that PP can be so good. Finally he has a real opportunity, not some random play then sit for a few games. And look how good he is.. All the signs were there. and so many did not see. So happy for my little PP!!

He was never playing over Smart, White, and Brogdon during Joe's 1st year. Moving off Smart + Brogdon gave him an opportunity for real minutes + more shots/touches.

This is true... So glad Stevens saw the light!!

[Fencer reregistered]

This is/may be one of my biggest pet Peeves about Coach IME and Joe. They had PP. and No he didn't just suddenly improve. Literally everyone here knows I have been posting yelling debating that PP can be so good. Finally he has a real opportunity, not some random play then sit for a few games. And look how good he is.. All the signs were there. and so many did not see. So happy for my little PP!!

At least you were rigid about it.

[bigfoot_cryptozoology]

Read on Twitter

[Smart2Nesmith43]

Read on Twitter

Please don't amplify the message of a racist like Gilbert Arenas by engaging with his "content".

[Fierce1]

Once PP gets his 2nd ring, Arenas will look like a complete idiot.

[Bad-Thoma]

Once PP gets his 2nd ring, Arenas will look like a complete idiot.

Yeah I don't think we need any more evidence, that bridge has been crossed.

[ConstableGeneva]

Watch on YouTube

[phincsfan]

The Bucks did a great job on PP last night. It wasn't that he was having a bad shooting night, it was they were up on him immediately and gave him zero daylight to shoot. When Giannis switched on him you could tell he wanted to pull the trigger but that length was too much. He looked like he had a little daylight a couple of times but he didn't pull the trigger. IMO, new tool incoming this offseason.

It's gonna happen, they'll watch film and they'll adjust. He's in everybody's head now. If a team scheme's on him for a series it will only benefit the C's because the spacing will be even better for them. That's the double edge sword they'll have to play with. Take away PP but create enough space like last night where JT can attack the basket and also give plenty of daylight for Sam to have a big night. Team's are in trouble again this year if they're worrying about a 6ft off the bench pg.

I bet he's working on it now, but next year another aspect PP will most likely add to his arsenal is shooting off the dribble. I'm not talking about let's say a pump fake, dribble and pull up where there will be enough space with no contest. One of the toughest shots is Kobe's pull up whether it be with the jab or a crossover. He just trusted that shot and having his wingspan and elevation on that shot nobody was blocking it. PP being 6ft he's gonna have to trust it and pull it with the slightest of daylight just like Steph. Gonna have to be a super quick release also. Not an everyday tool, but last night there was one play where he was being contested, he took a sidestep and the shot either was blocked or just had no power behind it. When I saw that I said to myself, when he watches film he's gonna jot that down and get into the lab in the offseason for that shot. It was similar to the play against the Cavs the other night where they knew the Cavs were gonna foul, PP got the inbounds and instead of going straight up with it so it could be a 3 shot foul, he held it too long and they called it on the floor.

[ConstableGeneva]

via BBall Index:

Celtics Guard Payton Pritchard has been one of the most efficient 3PT Shooters in the NBA averaging nearly 5 3PM per 75 Possessions and leading Rotation Guards in Points Over Expectation / 75 AND Stable Off-Screen Points per Possession.

While Pritchard doesn’t have the best Defensive Impact, his 93rd Percentile Offensive Impact makes him one of the most impactful Backup Guards in the league.

Not a surprise, Celtics better on offense with him ON the floor. 126.0 ON vs. 119.2 OFF. Mostly going up against 2nd units. Cs better defensively with him OFF the floor. 118.0 ON vs. 105.0 OFF. Huge part of it is our starting five with Horford has been really, really good on defense (105.4 DRtg).

[ConstableGeneva]

If Pritchard was given this opportunity, role, and playing time earlier in his career, Stevens and co. wouldn't have been able to sign him to his dirt-cheap contract. He wouldn't have agreed to that extension and probably would've bet on himself with numbers to back up his demand for higher pay possibly elsewhere. Someone would have priced them out in RFA. By "playing him behind vets," they were able to evaluate him behind the scenes while keeping his market value low. They kinda did the same with Timelord (though injuries were a factor in his RFA too) who played behind the likes of Theis, Baynes, Thompson, and Kanter.

So thank you Smart and Brogdon, I guess. Pritchard is playing like a starter-calibre player on low-level role player money. He keeps this up and stays healthy, someone might back the Brinks truck up on his next contract (UFA).

[Fierce1]

If Pritchard was given this opportunity, role, and playing time earlier in his career, Stevens and co. wouldn't have been able to sign him to his dirt-cheap contract. He wouldn't have agreed to that extension and probably would've bet on himself with numbers to back up his demand for higher pay possibly elsewhere. Someone would have priced them out in RFA. By "playing him behind vets," they were able to evaluate him behind the scenes while keeping his market value low. They kinda did the same with Timelord (though injuries were a factor in his RFA too) who played behind the likes of Theis, Baynes, Thompson, and Kanter.

So thank you Smart and Brogdon, I guess. Pritchard is playing like a starter-calibre player on low-level role player money. He keeps this up and stays healthy, someone might back the Brinks truck up on his next contract (UFA).

2028 is still a long way to go.

[ConstableGeneva]

If Pritchard was given this opportunity, role, and playing time earlier in his career, Stevens and co. wouldn't have been able to sign him to his dirt-cheap contract. He wouldn't have agreed to that extension and probably would've bet on himself with numbers to back up his demand for higher pay possibly elsewhere. Someone would have priced them out in RFA. By "playing him behind vets," they were able to evaluate him behind the scenes while keeping his market value low. They kinda did the same with Timelord (though injuries were a factor in his RFA too) who played behind the likes of Theis, Baynes, Thompson, and Kanter.

So thank you Smart and Brogdon, I guess. Pritchard is playing like a starter-calibre player on low-level role player money. He keeps this up and stays healthy, someone might back the Brinks truck up on his next contract (UFA).

2028 is still a long way to go.

Captain Obvious really needs to reply to everything, adding essentially nothing.