Payton Pritchard started last season in a funk. In the Celtics' first six games, he shot 40 percent from the field and a frigid 17.4 percent from beyond the arc.
Until a 42-point eruption on Nov. 30 against the Cleveland Cavaliers, he was shooting below 44 percent from the field and under 33 percent from three-point range.
What really bothered him was his approach. He was overthinking it out there. Pritchard didn't feel like himself. That left him disappointed. Of course, he righted the ship. He finished the year averaging 17.0 points per game, the third most on the team.
But as the former Sixth Man of the Year may be mastering in real time, this is about playing assertively and operating with aggression above all.
What playing with aggression means to Payton Pritchard
It's not about how many shots he's getting. It's about his approach. Is he generating paint touches? Is he creating drive-and-kick opportunities? And is he playing freely, driving off of instinct? When he is, the Celtics have a dynamic guard who is capable of being their No. 2 scorer. And as Joe Mazzulla noted, his impact goes beyond how many points he's putting on the board.
In this year's season opener against the Detroit Pistons, Pritchard was productive. He finished with 17 points, made 2/5 3s [40 percent], and grabbed four rebounds. However, it's about his mentality and making an impact that doesn't just read well on a box score.
In Boston's home opener, a 107-103 victory vs. the New York Knicks, the former Oregon star was, of course, thrilled to see his team get the win. However, from an individual standpoint, going 1/5, turning the ball over twice, and not playing the way he wanted left him disappointed.
After those struggles lingered at the beginning of last season, the seventh-year guard was determined to solve that quickly this time. Monday night at TD Garden, he did so in resounding fashion.
Payton Pritchard bounces back in Celtics' win vs. Bulls
The 28-year-old from the Pacific Northwest went supernova in Boston's 134-99 win against the Chicago Bulls.
In the third quarter, he generated 19 points. Pritchard hoisted eight shots and drilled seven. That included all five 3s he launched. Late in the period, he buried three in a row, sending the crowd into a frenzy.
He finished with a game-high 28 points. He didn't just convert on 10/16 attempts and 7/10 shots from beyond the arc. The six-foot-one guard distributed four assists and swiped two steals. It was exactly the mindset he wanted to play with.
"Being aggressive was the main mindset," said Pritchard after his bounce-back performance. "I think if you look at the last couple years, I just have games where it's very non-aggressive, kind of just out of rhythm. But it's a long season. Try to give myself forgiveness of it, even though it ate away at me. We got the W, [but] I want to perform better and be better for our team. So, tonight was coming out with just an aggressive mindset."
Playing freely and attacking the paint will have him going home in a much better mood than after the Celtics' first two tilts. He's human. This issue will pop up again at times. However, it's a testament to his maturity and determination that it took Pritchard just two games to recapture the mindset that allows him to play at his best. That's the version of him this team needs to achieve their ultimate goal.
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