Overall, I agree with Joe Mazzulla’s sentiment when it comes to the Celtics’ starting lineup. “I think people care too much; it only lasts five minutes.” More or less, that’s true. Players who start games don’t necessarily close, and there are an awful lot of minutes to fill in between. Jordan Walsh was a perfect example of this.
He got the nod as a starter in game one, but played only 13 minutes, starting each half, but barely playing at all beyond that. The closing lineup down the stretch was a little different than the starting group, and there was plenty of mixing and matching along the way to bring the whole thing together.
However, there is one clear issue with this philosophy, and it reared its ugly head in the form of Payton Prichard. Pritchard is the subject of as much debate as anyone as to whether he should start or not. He’s clearly one of the best three or four players on the team, and perhaps the second most important offensive player, but we’ve gotten used to seeing him thrive in a sixth-man role.
Pritchard has outgrown his 6th man role
That’s what we saw in the preseason, and that’s what we saw in the opener. The logic makes sense, as it makes it simple to have one of your point guards, Pritchard or Derrick White, on the floor at all times and allows Pritchard to come in and spark the team with some energy, leading the bench unit, while still being one of the main contributors.
The problem with that is that now, Pritchard is simply too important and valuable for that role. And while it’s simple to say he can still close the game, it boils down to basic math, and with bringing him off the bench, the math is against you.
Look no further than game one as evidence. Pritchard came off the bench, and while he came in early and was one of the first players off the pine, that’s still a solid 5 or 6 minutes to start each half that he’s not in the game. That leaves you with 18 or 19 minutes in each half, and unless you’re going to play him for that entire period - which would be foolish - it’s going to be very difficult to get him above 30 minutes, which should be the goal.
Pritchard has to play more
Sure enough, in the first game, he logged just 27 minutes and was notably absent for key stretches when the team’s offense fell off a cliff. The Celtics need him out there for more minutes, and to keep him fresh, that’s going to be very difficult if he’s not in the starting lineup.
Furthermore, bringing him off the bench takes away opportunities for him to play alongside the other best players and get into a rhythm. When he shares the floor with Jayson Tatum and Paul George, the team should be able to do some serious damage. But against the Pistons, those three were only out there for 8 minutes.
That’s just not enough, and whether it’s a tactic to get through the regular season or a mechanism to get ready for the playoffs, this strategy just doesn’t make a lot of sense. So, while I’m not a huge believer in the value of starting versus coming off the bench, in this case, I’ve been convinced that it’s almost essential that Boston promotes Pritchard to the starting lineup if they want to maximize him and the rest of this roster.
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