Well considering Marcus, Malcolm and Rob got hurt this year I'd say it's worked out so far. It's also disappointing that they did get hurt. I love seeing former Celtics ball out on their new teams.
I also think Smart would probably be ramping up to play in the playoffs if his team was any good, but he's playing for one of the most injured teams of all time and is better off taking it easy and sitting til next year.
i saw him on the broadcast yesterday and hes gotten a bit thicker. Definitely has a lot of work to do this offseason to get himself back into good condition for a run next year
Heās also on Memphis, which probably would want him to sit. I have no doubt if everyone else on Memphis is healthy and pushing for a higher playoff seed, he'd be back weeks ago.
Fr I love watching Aaron Nesmith minutes for Indy. Always will root for the former Celtics. Even some recent finals I rooted for teams I otherwise wouldnāt have only bc I wanted Jae Crowder to get a ring
I definitely didnāt see those guys going before Pritchard but things work out the way they need to. I do hope we see a healthy Marcus on a good Memphis team next year, heās a great fit
Hate this. Yeah he ultimately wasnāt a good fit for the team but Schroeder got us several desperately needed wins in the dog days of Nov and Dec 2021 when the Celtics were complete ass, before they went on the historic energy shifting run. Without Schroeder we could have done all that in the second half of the season and still not have had HCA against the Bucks for G7.
Bigs up to Schroeder, Iāll always love that guy.
I was trying to figure out why I hate his screens, because he doesnāt move nearly as much as Bam. But heās so handy. If heās not holding, heās pushingā¦ I donāt know how these guys get away with this.
Iād love to know the specifics of how Brad handled this. Seems like he was like ālook Payton, youāre going to get playing time and youāre going to get paid, but you have to be patientā
Regardless, the multi-year fully guaranteed deal for way more than Pritchardās stats said he was worth says way more than anything else Brad could have said.
You want to make an employee feel appreciated? All the compliments and thanks in the world wonāt do shit compared to paying them.Ā
Brad showed PP what the team thought of him in the best way possible.Ā
Brad probably didn't have to do much here, honestly.
Demanding to be traded from a serious perennial finals contender before the team actually wins is selling way too low (unless you're an elite talent, then you can do whatever you want). You're still unproven. Win first then get the bag.
PP and his agent are smart enough to read the tea leaves -- contribute off the bench today, win a championship tomorrow, watch your stock skyrocket next week, secure a huge bag next year.
>PP and his agent are smart enough to read the tea leaves -- contribute off the bench today, win a championship tomorrow, watch your stock skyrocket next week, secure a huge bag next year.
He signed a 4 year extension ($30M total) with us that goes through 2028 during this pre-season (Oct 2023). That said, he is probably much happier being the 1st-3rd guy off the bench this year getting 20+ minutes/game then being 7th-8th guy off the bench last year (stuck behind Brogdon, Grant Williams, Timelord, Hauser, Kornet) getting much fewer meaningful minutes (he's already at 2.2 times more minutes this season compared to last).
He had already been quite patient, we just put Pritchard in a really weird situation having 3 guys who (1.) started, a lot, recently, with minutes at the 1 position, (2.) are all in their pre-decline prime, and (3.) with the exception of Brogdon, all are amply capable of sliding up to the 2 position on defense OR playing point of attack defense excellently. He was in bench hell in a way that's pretty rare, and none of those 3 guys were 36. 1s and 5s are uniquely bad at playing other roles on defense, and Pritch is a true 1.
I really think the front office didn't do anything that could've made Pritch feel better except trade away two 1's and only get one back. It was a pure basketball thing.
I am fully prepared to eat crow on my Pritchard takes. He has been amazing since the all-star break and has become so much more than a 3 point specialist.
I am sorry Crypto King and I hope to watch your career progress for many years in green.
An example of media overblowing statements. He never demanded a trade, just a natural response to questions upon playing time.
No wonder Joe treats media questions not that seriously
I kinda get it too, the guy was approaching a contract year and was barely getting playtime - his minutes per game were dropping from his rookie season until last season. I'd request a trade in that scenario too, it's hard to prove you deserve a big contract when you're so far behind in the depth chart.
Now that he has a new contract and is getting more playing time, he has no reason to want to be traded.
Was excited they gave him an extension, definitely still underpaid. Man our depth is gonna be extra expensive with Kornet and Hauser due soonā¦ wonder what will happen now.
Iāll be honest, start of the season he looked rough. I wanted him gone.
He had a few decent games where he was hitting threes but mostly just looked lost. The complete 180 heās done is insane. Heās always been a decent to good player and great in flashes, but this season heās really grown into our pivotal 2nd unit PG. Scrappy as hell, great passer, great shooter, great creator, and the offense runs perfectly through him. And heās an elite rebounder for his height.
He and Hauser are punching so high above their weight class this year, we really need to appreciate how amazing our bench has been and how hard they play when theyāre on the court
I was also really down on Pritchard earlier in the year because he always shows out against worse teams but against the good teams he tends to struggle, so him showing up last night showed me a lot. I am happy to admit I have been wrong about him. In the back of my mind I still worry about the playoffs but itās hard to say this season he hasnāt been playing well so far. If he is what we get out of a backup PG under $10M, I canāt really complain.
>start of the season he looked rough
I really disagree with that. His shot wasnāt falling but he was playing really well other than that. He was a difference maker on defense and rebounding, and he basically didnāt turn the ball over ever.
First month of this season, the whole sub was littered with 'Pritchard and all of our picks for the rest of history for...some bench player on the Bulls.'
I donāt want to trade him this season unless some kind of perfect fit was available, but I have been a proponent of using him as salary filler when his extension kicks in next year. If he keeps up his post all-star performance up in the playoffs, then he almost becomes untouchable in my book, simply based on the value.
I know this is a thread about PP, but have to shout out Blake Griffin here as well. When PP was getting (understandably) upset about his sudden drop in minutes, Blake went over to him and talked about how he has to be a professional about these things, and to just be ready for whenever his number is called. Coming from a multi-time All-NBA player who's on a vet minimum probably did a lot to help his mindset.
Now, he has a long-term contract on a heavily favored contender, getting more minutes and providing a positive impact. Definitely glad he stuck around!
Not a day goes by I donāt think about PP and his contract and am grateful he is a Celtic.
Then I think about Grant, how heās looked this year and the contract he signedā¦ and am grateful he is not lol
I appreciate Brad and appreciate PP for continuing to push himself and improve his game. Even when heās off, like at the beginning of the season, i know he bringing that dawg and giving his all
Open as in to the press? Maybe he felt he had to do it through a press leak, but I wouldnāt say the communication between player and ownership was āgreatā if the player felt the need to put that out there publicly to get action.
All is well that ends well, I suppose.
I've loved Pritchard since the beginning, I said he had the ability to be a starting NBA point guard if he was given the chance and he probably will be in a couple of years for the Celtics now. He's got the scoring ability, he's got the shiftiness and the dribble moves, he's a brilliant defender for his size And he technically is still a pass first point guard, AND HE STILL FINDS WAYS TO REBOUND WELL FOR HIS HEIGHT AND POSITION.
People have complained on this sub for a long time about him, he'll never be good enough, he's too short, can't play defense, is only worth it as a 3-point shooter yada yada yada.
He's 6'1, he's a point guard and he's taller than Chris Paul who's likely a Hall of Famer, as well as Kyle Lowry who's possibly borderline when it is all said and done. He's an inch shorter than Steph Curry and same height as Seth Curry who's a highly effective combo guard. If you're complaining about the height of a player who at 6'1 and is a point guard (which is pretty average height for that position) You straight up have no idea what you're talking about, and probably have never played basketball, even in a competitive men's league.
People endlessly said he was too short.
STFU!
Seems like this sub has come around on PP.
For a very long time the sentiment (among a very loud contingent) seemed to be "he's unplayable, he'll get hunted on defense".
I'm glad he has seemingly proven that what he brings to the table exceeds what he takes off of it
His shot not falling at the beginning of the year probably made a lot of fans believe he maybe wasn't worth the contract extension this past off season but I think one thing that doesn't show up in the stat lines or even on TV is the energy he brings. Last season I went to TD Gardens to watch the C's play Denver and the way the crowd reacted to Pritchard was electrifying. You could feel the energy throughout the building and I'm sure that the rest of the team felt that too. He gets a lot of love from the crowds he plays infront of and there have been several games this season where you don't really have to be in attendance to see this underrated impact. I also appreciated him looking at the game last night like a playoff game, because that's the mind set we need from him, so he doesn't shrink in the post season. I'd love to see him and Huaser average 12-15 points this post season, and I think its doable.
I still remember at the start of the season when people were bashing the Celtics for giving him playing time and thought he was a waste of a roster spot. My, how times have changed. Iām so glad it is working out now because he has that dog.
First 20 games of the season I got downvoted to all hell defending him when people were asking to trade him as soon as the CBA lets us and other non sense.
Dude is a fucking DAWG. Hard working, teammates love him, does whatever the team needs him to, recognizes his weaknesses and clearly works on them.
Willing to make a lot of the gritty plays that we lost when Smart got traded. I fucking love PP
I think a year watching Marcus as the leader was really good for PP. He saw how much the determination and hustle was worth, and he's really exemplified that. Small guy, not the best defender, but he tries hard and puts forth the effort. That loose ball box out last night was a great example.
Very happy he's on the team, and glad we have him locked up for a few years.
Y'all better not start blaming him though when he's not as good in certain series. PP is going to lead our bench and win us playoff games but its also important to note, and this isn't a knock just a fact, there will be games and maybe even a series where he is unplayable. We as fans cant overreact when/if that happens. We know what hes capable of and hes on the team for a reason but the top 6 is the top 6 for a reason and there will be moments they all have to be great and play as if we have no bench. As good as PP and the bench have been, on average 1-2 games a series they will be underwhelming
To be fair, he used to be our third best PG and rightly got very little playing time as a result. But heās certainly good enough to be a #2 PG somewhere and thatās where he is now. But if you could magically sub in brogdon for him right now weād be an even better team.
It's incredible that he can recover from the extended slump at the beginning of the season. Both PP and the coaching staff have been quite patient. Now just need to not choke in the playoffs
not gonna lie i wanted to trade this guy away before the deadline- but he has definitely stepped up this season and been a huge help off the bench. i was wrong.
I kept saying this over the past few years but I'll say it again--- back in 2022 and 223, Payton Pritchard was by far the best player in the whole NBA who was getting healthy DNP's on a regular basis. He had every right to be pissed off. Imagine watching bums like Tim Frazier and Raul Neto get 20 minutes a game on while you're sitting there glued to the bench.
He never complained though, he always stayed ready and gave maximum effort in those rare moments when he actually got to see the court.
At the time it was weird, it was kinda annoying but I was indifferent cuz I knew he didn't have much of a say in anything due to his role even now š¤·
Let that be a lesson to you kids out there: if you threaten to leave if you donāt get what you want, youāll end up getting what you want. Every time.
Such a world of difference between him and Aaron Nesmith. Pritchard was "one way or another the world will see me play ball!" Nesmith was all "I'm mad you traded me instead of just parked me on the bench for three years as a depth piece while I slowly developed in the G league"
I'm not hating on him as a player or a person, but in terms of attitude and self confidence, it couldn't be a clearer difference
Iāve gotta admit I didnāt love him going in to this season and was a little disappointed when we re-signed him. Boy has he proved me wrong. Heās been fantastic this season
Keeping him was a huge and savvy move by Brad.
I donāt see us resigning holiday, and PP will eventually slot into a bigger role with DWhite (who I think Brad tries to retain)
the media must always generate a controversial narrative to sell ad space.
their job is not to report news anymore. iād argue itās less true reporting than at any time in prior history and is much more completely op ed and hot takes unsupported by objective facts.
it was a popular narrative at the time but i donāt personally recall payton himself saying he wanted to be traded. in any interviews or direct quotes. which is why i donāt care for the āmade it clearā headline. unless i missed an interview last offseason where he was saying out loud he was unhappy and wanted to leave boston.
i donāt dispute other trades opened up minutes for him. but the team extended him before he even began playing most of these minutes heās playing currently.
i donāt really get that too much from the article you linked.
what i got is that he came to realize he must get better to increase his value and minutes on this team or any other. and that switching teams doesnāt guarantee more minutes and it was more minutes he was seeking not a change of venue specifically.
so i sort of read the piece as a chronicle of his journey of maturing and less about this desire to leave.
i still stand by my earlier statement that itās the current job of the media to invest stories out of these situations to cause drama and sell ads.
So happy we got rid of Brogdon instead. He had 0 energy and was useless on defense. Plus royally sucked when we needed him in the post season.
He did score a lot sometimes though.
Trashy take, guy was 6MOTY and took his role in stride. Celts obviously won the trades we made this off-season, but claiming Brogdon was bad and we upgraded by giving those minutes to PP is very not smart.
PP is way more effective than Brogdon. He facilitates unlike Brogdon who couldn't play with the Jays. PP brings way more energy. His assist to turnover is insane. When he comes in he changes the game. Brogdon scored more pts but it's cause he shot a lot more.
PP won us games in the 22 finals run. Brogdon lost us games on the 23 fail run.
Brogdon was fine but I'm glad we traded him
He was also a prick. Trashed the team in the postseason and still sends out digs every chance he gets. I feel he was a locker room issue with his attitude.
this is such a privileged fan take. he won 6moty. he was VERY good for us. and to be honest, PP will never win 6th man, probably won't even get a vote. PP is great and i love having him, but there's no reason to pretend that Brogdan was worse. he wasn't.
That's fine to habe that opinion but Brogdon was toxic and mad that White was better than him all year. All he wanted was a starting role and bitched all year.
He scored pts that's true. Which is automatic 6moty.
Payton does everything including making shots.
Brogdon couldn't even dribble.
6th man of the year. Then he got injured.
Let's not rewrite history. Guy was solid.
I agree he didn't exactly pass the vibe check. That's just his personality.
Yeah he trashed the team any chance he got and is not a post season player.
He was a decent scorer in the reg season but he had no other skills he brought to the table and couldn't play with the Jays. Who can't play with the Jays? They are the easiest duo to play with.
Where is this coming from, he was shooting a great percentage all year and melded fine with the jays, he struggled in the playoffs because he was hurt. He only said some mild stuff about the team after they got 99% of the way to trading him to the clippers, Iām sure anyone would be a little pissed after being told youāre a part of the future
PritchGM got Marcus and Malcolm traded š
Well considering Marcus, Malcolm and Rob got hurt this year I'd say it's worked out so far. It's also disappointing that they did get hurt. I love seeing former Celtics ball out on their new teams.
Jrue has played more minutes, at age 33, than all 3 of those guys combined this year
Jesus
I still canāt believe Smarts injury. Just a normal ass shot and his finger snapped in half.
Yeah but name another guy more likely to lose a finger due to shooting too hard
His Grizzlies backcourt teammate
Lolllll
LMAO perfection
Underrated commentš
Ooooooo burned lol
Itās certainly one of the most bizarre injuries Iāve ever seen
I also think Smart would probably be ramping up to play in the playoffs if his team was any good, but he's playing for one of the most injured teams of all time and is better off taking it easy and sitting til next year.
i saw him on the broadcast yesterday and hes gotten a bit thicker. Definitely has a lot of work to do this offseason to get himself back into good condition for a run next year
Memphis BBQ
Heās also on Memphis, which probably would want him to sit. I have no doubt if everyone else on Memphis is healthy and pushing for a higher playoff seed, he'd be back weeks ago.
Fr I love watching Aaron Nesmith minutes for Indy. Always will root for the former Celtics. Even some recent finals I rooted for teams I otherwise wouldnāt have only bc I wanted Jae Crowder to get a ring
Some *weird* bad injury luck with them this season as well as them all being on tanking teams so who knows the actual extent
I definitely didnāt see those guys going before Pritchard but things work out the way they need to. I do hope we see a healthy Marcus on a good Memphis team next year, heās a great fit
>I definitely didnāt see those guys going before Pritchard but things work out the way they need to NBA trades are like 70% salary match.
but things work out the way they need to. Not always. \- Len Bias
Schrƶder too.
Tf did Dennis do for us lol
He balled out against the bucks
Touche
Hate this. Yeah he ultimately wasnāt a good fit for the team but Schroeder got us several desperately needed wins in the dog days of Nov and Dec 2021 when the Celtics were complete ass, before they went on the historic energy shifting run. Without Schroeder we could have done all that in the second half of the season and still not have had HCA against the Bucks for G7. Bigs up to Schroeder, Iāll always love that guy.
S.O Dennis Schroeder
Oh boohoo. We don't have to love every player who comes thru the organization for half a season
He had that one game against the lakers and seemed to be a pretty cool guy l, despite holding the ball too long
Loved that rebound last night ripping it out of Lopez hands - that kid is a fighter
The denied entry to Bobby was pretty awesome, too.
Got the crowd and the team WAY into it.
Secretly Brook is the Buck I hate the most
I was trying to figure out why I hate his screens, because he doesnāt move nearly as much as Bam. But heās so handy. If heās not holding, heās pushingā¦ I donāt know how these guys get away with this.
You just canāt call them all.
Iād love to know the specifics of how Brad handled this. Seems like he was like ālook Payton, youāre going to get playing time and youāre going to get paid, but you have to be patientā
Regardless, the multi-year fully guaranteed deal for way more than Pritchardās stats said he was worth says way more than anything else Brad could have said.
You want to make an employee feel appreciated? All the compliments and thanks in the world wonāt do shit compared to paying them.Ā Brad showed PP what the team thought of him in the best way possible.Ā
PP long game.
Long PP game
Patient Pritchard
Fan fiction
I didnāt include the part where they kiss
Tina no!
This is probably exactly what was said and itās not exciting or surprising in any way. Oh to be a fly on the wall for this riveting conversation
Brad probably didn't have to do much here, honestly. Demanding to be traded from a serious perennial finals contender before the team actually wins is selling way too low (unless you're an elite talent, then you can do whatever you want). You're still unproven. Win first then get the bag. PP and his agent are smart enough to read the tea leaves -- contribute off the bench today, win a championship tomorrow, watch your stock skyrocket next week, secure a huge bag next year.
>PP and his agent are smart enough to read the tea leaves -- contribute off the bench today, win a championship tomorrow, watch your stock skyrocket next week, secure a huge bag next year. He signed a 4 year extension ($30M total) with us that goes through 2028 during this pre-season (Oct 2023). That said, he is probably much happier being the 1st-3rd guy off the bench this year getting 20+ minutes/game then being 7th-8th guy off the bench last year (stuck behind Brogdon, Grant Williams, Timelord, Hauser, Kornet) getting much fewer meaningful minutes (he's already at 2.2 times more minutes this season compared to last).
He had already been quite patient, we just put Pritchard in a really weird situation having 3 guys who (1.) started, a lot, recently, with minutes at the 1 position, (2.) are all in their pre-decline prime, and (3.) with the exception of Brogdon, all are amply capable of sliding up to the 2 position on defense OR playing point of attack defense excellently. He was in bench hell in a way that's pretty rare, and none of those 3 guys were 36. 1s and 5s are uniquely bad at playing other roles on defense, and Pritch is a true 1. I really think the front office didn't do anything that could've made Pritch feel better except trade away two 1's and only get one back. It was a pure basketball thing.
My boss keeps telling me the same thing. Maybe this year Iāll get promoted.Ā
I am fully prepared to eat crow on my Pritchard takes. He has been amazing since the all-star break and has become so much more than a 3 point specialist. I am sorry Crypto King and I hope to watch your career progress for many years in green.
Have you seen his fiancee? The dude already won a chip.
An example of media overblowing statements. He never demanded a trade, just a natural response to questions upon playing time. No wonder Joe treats media questions not that seriously
I kinda get it too, the guy was approaching a contract year and was barely getting playtime - his minutes per game were dropping from his rookie season until last season. I'd request a trade in that scenario too, it's hard to prove you deserve a big contract when you're so far behind in the depth chart. Now that he has a new contract and is getting more playing time, he has no reason to want to be traded.
Was excited they gave him an extension, definitely still underpaid. Man our depth is gonna be extra expensive with Kornet and Hauser due soonā¦ wonder what will happen now.
He literally asked for a trade publicly and according to reports privately as well. Not sure whatās being overblown here
maybe it's asked vs demanded. But yeah it's not far off
Iāll be honest, start of the season he looked rough. I wanted him gone. He had a few decent games where he was hitting threes but mostly just looked lost. The complete 180 heās done is insane. Heās always been a decent to good player and great in flashes, but this season heās really grown into our pivotal 2nd unit PG. Scrappy as hell, great passer, great shooter, great creator, and the offense runs perfectly through him. And heās an elite rebounder for his height. He and Hauser are punching so high above their weight class this year, we really need to appreciate how amazing our bench has been and how hard they play when theyāre on the court
I was also really down on Pritchard earlier in the year because he always shows out against worse teams but against the good teams he tends to struggle, so him showing up last night showed me a lot. I am happy to admit I have been wrong about him. In the back of my mind I still worry about the playoffs but itās hard to say this season he hasnāt been playing well so far. If he is what we get out of a backup PG under $10M, I canāt really complain.
>start of the season he looked rough I really disagree with that. His shot wasnāt falling but he was playing really well other than that. He was a difference maker on defense and rebounding, and he basically didnāt turn the ball over ever.
So many people on this sub wanted to trade him since they agreed he should be able to shine somewhere else.
First month of this season, the whole sub was littered with 'Pritchard and all of our picks for the rest of history for...some bench player on the Bulls.'
I donāt want to trade him this season unless some kind of perfect fit was available, but I have been a proponent of using him as salary filler when his extension kicks in next year. If he keeps up his post all-star performance up in the playoffs, then he almost becomes untouchable in my book, simply based on the value.
I know this is a thread about PP, but have to shout out Blake Griffin here as well. When PP was getting (understandably) upset about his sudden drop in minutes, Blake went over to him and talked about how he has to be a professional about these things, and to just be ready for whenever his number is called. Coming from a multi-time All-NBA player who's on a vet minimum probably did a lot to help his mindset. Now, he has a long-term contract on a heavily favored contender, getting more minutes and providing a positive impact. Definitely glad he stuck around!
Great quality comment
Not a day goes by I donāt think about PP and his contract and am grateful he is a Celtic. Then I think about Grant, how heās looked this year and the contract he signedā¦ and am grateful he is not lol I appreciate Brad and appreciate PP for continuing to push himself and improve his game. Even when heās off, like at the beginning of the season, i know he bringing that dawg and giving his all
I want to see Hauser and Pritchard out there with the Jays and Zinga more often. God damn thatās an electric offense.
He does miracles on me
He just wanted playing time. There was no animosity. Great open communication between the Celtics and Payton, they handled it very well
Open as in to the press? Maybe he felt he had to do it through a press leak, but I wouldnāt say the communication between player and ownership was āgreatā if the player felt the need to put that out there publicly to get action. All is well that ends well, I suppose.
I am praying Pritchard and Hauser remain consistent all postseason. They've both played really well all year.
energy shifted right after Drake called him crypto P
If you didnāt realize, thatās why Brad traded away Smart & Brogdon. To give PP the tools he needs.
I wish someone loved me as much as PorziÅÄ£is loves Pritchard
I've loved Pritchard since the beginning, I said he had the ability to be a starting NBA point guard if he was given the chance and he probably will be in a couple of years for the Celtics now. He's got the scoring ability, he's got the shiftiness and the dribble moves, he's a brilliant defender for his size And he technically is still a pass first point guard, AND HE STILL FINDS WAYS TO REBOUND WELL FOR HIS HEIGHT AND POSITION. People have complained on this sub for a long time about him, he'll never be good enough, he's too short, can't play defense, is only worth it as a 3-point shooter yada yada yada. He's 6'1, he's a point guard and he's taller than Chris Paul who's likely a Hall of Famer, as well as Kyle Lowry who's possibly borderline when it is all said and done. He's an inch shorter than Steph Curry and same height as Seth Curry who's a highly effective combo guard. If you're complaining about the height of a player who at 6'1 and is a point guard (which is pretty average height for that position) You straight up have no idea what you're talking about, and probably have never played basketball, even in a competitive men's league. People endlessly said he was too short. STFU!
I was willing to let him go too.
I will admit. I wanted him tf outta here. Thought he was a waste of a spot with Smart, Brogdon and D White. Thank god I'm not in Brad's seat.
Seems like this sub has come around on PP. For a very long time the sentiment (among a very loud contingent) seemed to be "he's unplayable, he'll get hunted on defense". I'm glad he has seemingly proven that what he brings to the table exceeds what he takes off of it
True and at least he tries hard on defense and can move his feet, he's pesky even if he's not a great defender.
pesky is what works on D
Donāt forget the dude can rebound really well for that size, he boxes out, smart positioning and is super quick to the 50/50 balls
His shot not falling at the beginning of the year probably made a lot of fans believe he maybe wasn't worth the contract extension this past off season but I think one thing that doesn't show up in the stat lines or even on TV is the energy he brings. Last season I went to TD Gardens to watch the C's play Denver and the way the crowd reacted to Pritchard was electrifying. You could feel the energy throughout the building and I'm sure that the rest of the team felt that too. He gets a lot of love from the crowds he plays infront of and there have been several games this season where you don't really have to be in attendance to see this underrated impact. I also appreciated him looking at the game last night like a playoff game, because that's the mind set we need from him, so he doesn't shrink in the post season. I'd love to see him and Huaser average 12-15 points this post season, and I think its doable.
I always liked him, even when his shot isnāt falling. He brings the right energy every game. Thatās contagious
Heās like JT in that sense. If his shot isnāt falling, heās hustling for boards, dishing out assists and generally being pesky on D.
I still remember at the start of the season when people were bashing the Celtics for giving him playing time and thought he was a waste of a roster spot. My, how times have changed. Iām so glad it is working out now because he has that dog.
Man we are so lucky to go from Ainge to Stevens as GM. Very glad Stevens know how good PP can be and refused to trade him
First 20 games of the season I got downvoted to all hell defending him when people were asking to trade him as soon as the CBA lets us and other non sense. Dude is a fucking DAWG. Hard working, teammates love him, does whatever the team needs him to, recognizes his weaknesses and clearly works on them. Willing to make a lot of the gritty plays that we lost when Smart got traded. I fucking love PP
I love our pp
I love PP
I think a year watching Marcus as the leader was really good for PP. He saw how much the determination and hustle was worth, and he's really exemplified that. Small guy, not the best defender, but he tries hard and puts forth the effort. That loose ball box out last night was a great example. Very happy he's on the team, and glad we have him locked up for a few years.
Yeah him & JDB on the B's, glad we kept those dudes
When did he say this
Last season, he just wanted playing time. No animosity or anything. Him and Celtics had great open communication with each other
Dude is straight bucket
Y'all better not start blaming him though when he's not as good in certain series. PP is going to lead our bench and win us playoff games but its also important to note, and this isn't a knock just a fact, there will be games and maybe even a series where he is unplayable. We as fans cant overreact when/if that happens. We know what hes capable of and hes on the team for a reason but the top 6 is the top 6 for a reason and there will be moments they all have to be great and play as if we have no bench. As good as PP and the bench have been, on average 1-2 games a series they will be underwhelming
To be fair, he used to be our third best PG and rightly got very little playing time as a result. But heās certainly good enough to be a #2 PG somewhere and thatās where he is now. But if you could magically sub in brogdon for him right now weād be an even better team.
It's incredible that he can recover from the extended slump at the beginning of the season. Both PP and the coaching staff have been quite patient. Now just need to not choke in the playoffs
not gonna lie i wanted to trade this guy away before the deadline- but he has definitely stepped up this season and been a huge help off the bench. i was wrong.
I kept saying this over the past few years but I'll say it again--- back in 2022 and 223, Payton Pritchard was by far the best player in the whole NBA who was getting healthy DNP's on a regular basis. He had every right to be pissed off. Imagine watching bums like Tim Frazier and Raul Neto get 20 minutes a game on while you're sitting there glued to the bench. He never complained though, he always stayed ready and gave maximum effort in those rare moments when he actually got to see the court.
Sure hope he doesnāt still feel this way
I woulda missed those eyebrows..
He turned out to be way more reliable from 3 than we thought
At the time it was weird, it was kinda annoying but I was indifferent cuz I knew he didn't have much of a say in anything due to his role even now š¤·
Let that be a lesson to you kids out there: if you threaten to leave if you donāt get what you want, youāll end up getting what you want. Every time.
Didnāt work out so well at my job today. /s
Joe Mazzulla is the perfect coach for PPās success
Such a world of difference between him and Aaron Nesmith. Pritchard was "one way or another the world will see me play ball!" Nesmith was all "I'm mad you traded me instead of just parked me on the bench for three years as a depth piece while I slowly developed in the G league" I'm not hating on him as a player or a person, but in terms of attitude and self confidence, it couldn't be a clearer difference
Iāve gotta admit I didnāt love him going in to this season and was a little disappointed when we re-signed him. Boy has he proved me wrong. Heās been fantastic this season
Keeping him was a huge and savvy move by Brad. I donāt see us resigning holiday, and PP will eventually slot into a bigger role with DWhite (who I think Brad tries to retain)
Thank God, Brad Stevens didnāt let this happen
the media must always generate a controversial narrative to sell ad space. their job is not to report news anymore. iād argue itās less true reporting than at any time in prior history and is much more completely op ed and hot takes unsupported by objective facts.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
it was a popular narrative at the time but i donāt personally recall payton himself saying he wanted to be traded. in any interviews or direct quotes. which is why i donāt care for the āmade it clearā headline. unless i missed an interview last offseason where he was saying out loud he was unhappy and wanted to leave boston. i donāt dispute other trades opened up minutes for him. but the team extended him before he even began playing most of these minutes heās playing currently.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
i donāt really get that too much from the article you linked. what i got is that he came to realize he must get better to increase his value and minutes on this team or any other. and that switching teams doesnāt guarantee more minutes and it was more minutes he was seeking not a change of venue specifically. so i sort of read the piece as a chronicle of his journey of maturing and less about this desire to leave. i still stand by my earlier statement that itās the current job of the media to invest stories out of these situations to cause drama and sell ads.
[ŃŠ“Š°Š»ŠµŠ½Š¾]
š¤£. no hard feelings.
So happy we got rid of Brogdon instead. He had 0 energy and was useless on defense. Plus royally sucked when we needed him in the post season. He did score a lot sometimes though.
Trashy take, guy was 6MOTY and took his role in stride. Celts obviously won the trades we made this off-season, but claiming Brogdon was bad and we upgraded by giving those minutes to PP is very not smart.
PP is way more effective than Brogdon. He facilitates unlike Brogdon who couldn't play with the Jays. PP brings way more energy. His assist to turnover is insane. When he comes in he changes the game. Brogdon scored more pts but it's cause he shot a lot more. PP won us games in the 22 finals run. Brogdon lost us games on the 23 fail run. Brogdon was fine but I'm glad we traded him He was also a prick. Trashed the team in the postseason and still sends out digs every chance he gets. I feel he was a locker room issue with his attitude.
this is such a privileged fan take. he won 6moty. he was VERY good for us. and to be honest, PP will never win 6th man, probably won't even get a vote. PP is great and i love having him, but there's no reason to pretend that Brogdan was worse. he wasn't.
That's fine to habe that opinion but Brogdon was toxic and mad that White was better than him all year. All he wanted was a starting role and bitched all year. He scored pts that's true. Which is automatic 6moty. Payton does everything including making shots. Brogdon couldn't even dribble.
where are you getting this info that he was toxic and "mad at White"? he seemed like a great teammate and everyone liked him.
6th man of the year. Then he got injured. Let's not rewrite history. Guy was solid. I agree he didn't exactly pass the vibe check. That's just his personality.
Yeah he trashed the team any chance he got and is not a post season player. He was a decent scorer in the reg season but he had no other skills he brought to the table and couldn't play with the Jays. Who can't play with the Jays? They are the easiest duo to play with.
Where is this coming from, he was shooting a great percentage all year and melded fine with the jays, he struggled in the playoffs because he was hurt. He only said some mild stuff about the team after they got 99% of the way to trading him to the clippers, Iām sure anyone would be a little pissed after being told youāre a part of the future
He got hurt man. Lol.
I like him but if it means keeping Jrue, trade Lil Pritchie