Payton Pritchard just absolutely torched the Chicago Bulls on Monday night, dropping a monster 28 points on 10-16 shooting, including a wild 7-10 from deep. What a turnaround, right? Just days earlier, he was stuck in a dismal performance against the New York Knicks, managing only 4 points on 1-for-5 shooting in 30 minutes. The Celtics got that first win of the season against New York, thanks in large part to Jayson Tatum’s masterful 36-point night, but for Pritchard, it clearly didn’t sit right.
Forget Friday, This Was Pure Fire
Pritchard’s explosion against the Bulls was exactly what he needed. He piled up those 28 points in just 22 minutes, adding 4 assists, 1 rebound, and 2 steals, finishing with a stellar +22. He did most of his damage during a dominant 39-point Celtics third quarter, shooting an insane 7-for-8 from the field and nailing 5-for-5 from three in that period alone. You could practically hear the sigh of relief. “It just feels good to catch the rhythm again, and just bounce back from the other night,” he said. That Friday night against the Knicks, he just wasn’t aggressive, didn’t attack the paint decisively. While he tried to give himself “forgiveness of it,” he admitted that performance “ate away at me.”
The October Anomaly
Here’s the wild thing: this up-and-down start for Pritchard is actually kind of his career norm, at least for October. In his 22 career games played in October, Pritchard has shot just 38.7% from the field and a cold 31% from three. That’s his least efficient month by far, and even he can’t pinpoint why. “I really couldn’t put my finger on it, but I think you could look at the last couple of years, like, I just have games where it’s very non-aggressive, just out of rhythm,” he explained.
The difference from the rest of the season is stark. Every other month, the 28-year-old shoots at least 44% from the field and 38% from three. November usually brings a dramatic bounceback, with Pritchard averaging 45.3% from the field and 40.3% from three over 66 career games in that month. He did show flashes of a strong start this year, putting up 17 points on 4-for-9 shooting in the opener against the Detroit Pistons. But that Knicks game still left a sour taste. “We got the W, but I want to perform better and be bet” he noted, indicating a desire to improve. Even in Year 7, after signing a 2-year, $44.2 million extension right before the season, he knows he recovers from slow starts.
This guy clearly gets in his own head, but Monday night showed us why he’s so crucial. If he can bottle up that Bulls performance and unleash it consistently, especially as November rolls around, Celtics fans are gonna be absolutely hyped.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Celtics Blog.
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