2 major adjustments the Boston Celtics must make in Game 3
By Mark Nilon
Boston Celtics adjustment No. 1) Make Payton Pritchard the first guard off bench
Time and time again the Boston Celtics have gone with trade deadline acquisition, Derrick White, as their sixth man/ first guard to have come off the pine and, while he’s shown flashes throughout his tenure with the franchise thus far, for the most part, he has proven to be quite inconsistent, especially during this year’s postseason.
Because of this, assuming he’ll be taken out of the starting lineup for Game 3 with Marcus Smart back and ready to play (missed Game 2 with a bruised right thigh), the C’s may once again go to the 28-year-old as their first backcourt option to have come off the bench.
However, considering just how poorly he’s produced through six playoff games (5.2 points and 2.3 assists on 10-for-35 shooting from the floor and 3-for-18 shooting from deep), perhaps Ime Udoka may want to tweak things up a bit when it comes to this area of the rotation and, to us, we feel that Payton Pritchard may be a worthy replacement for White within the team’s pecking order.
The sophomore has found himself lighting things up on numerous occasions under the bright lights of the 2022 postseason, even singlehandedly getting the Celtics back into the ball game in Game 2 of their bout against the Brooklyn Nets where they came from behind in the second half to ultimately win by seven.
From an offensive perspective, the move to Pritchard as the first guard off the bench could prove to be quite beneficial, as he’s a much more reliable shooter than White and is the best catch-and-shoot option on the team from this year, boasting a Boston best 62.8 effective field goal percentage on such attempts.
On top of this, while White is without a doubt the better defender of the two, the 24-year-old is by no means a slouch on this side of the ball, as he has quick hands for swiping and underrated strength.
The C’s should ride Prichard’s hot play during this year’s playoffs and strongly consider making him the first guard from the second unit to come in, for he’s brought much more stability to the team as a whole than Derrick White has.