With Derrick White (personal reasons) and Al Horford (rest) sidelined for the Celtics, Sam Hauser slid into the starting lineup.
Hauser has been providing the bulk of the scoring off the bench for the Celtics, a unit that has significantly improved from earlier in the season. The 25-year-old 3-and-D wing has led Boston’s second unit in scoring in eight of the nine games he has come off the bench this month.
But with Hauser in the starting lineup, the Celtics needed someone to step up.
Enter Payton Pritchard.
Pritchard had been leaving his mark on games, with his activity on the defensive end and crashing the glass – Contributing to his +15.3 net rating entering Monday night (good for third-best on the team), but he was still looking to find his shooting stroke.
The 25-year-old sharpshooter entered Monday night’s game shooting 23-of-69 (33.3%) from the floor and 10-of-41 (24.3%) from beyond the arc this season, as he found himself in a real shooting slump following his phenomenal preseason.
The three-year vet, who is a career 42.4% shooter from the field and 39.1% career shooter from deep, finally found his stroke on Monday night.
Pritchard came out hot, pouring in 12 first-quarter points on a perfect 4-of-4 from three-point range. The former Oregon Duck’s four triples in the opening frame doubled his previous game-high entering the night. His four threes in the first quarter also tied his career-high for most made threes in a quarter.
By the 8:44 mark of the second quarter, Pritchard had already set a new season-high for points.
Pritchard, who signed a four-year $30 million fully guaranteed extension with the Celtics in early October, finished the night with 21 points on 8-of-14 (57.1%) shooting from the field and 5-of-8 (62.5%) from deep. Pritchard’s 21 points led all reserves from either team.
The 6-foot-1 guard also snagged six rebounds (two offensive), dished out three assists, and registered two steals. For a smaller guard, Pritchard has impressed with his work on the glass, as his 18 offensive rebounds this season are fourth-most on the team.
It was only a matter of time before Pritchard broke out of his shooting slump. Pritchard has displayed at various points that he can be an effective scorer in the NBA and is simply too dangerous of a shooter to stay that cold for much longer.
Another area that stuck out was Pritchard's playmaking, specifically in the fourth quarter.
With Jaylen Brown in foul trouble and Jayson Tatum, Kristaps Porzingis, and Jrue Holiday catching a breather, Joe Mazzulla turned to a lineup consisting of Pritchard, Svi Mykhailiuk, Hauser, Oshae Brissett, and Luke Kornet to start the fourth, needing Pritchard to step up and create offense for the second unit, and he answered the call.
Led by Pritchard, the Celtics outscored the Hornets 10-8 in those heavy bench minutes, as Pritchard scored or assisted on all four of Boston's buckets over that stretch. Pritchard impressed with his playmaking in the preseason, and we got a glimpse of that Monday night.
While some bench help in the future (specifically in the front court) is probably still on Brad Stevens’ radar, Boston’s bench has enough scoring options right now. Hauser, Pritchard, and Al Horford are all capable of making an impact on this team, as we have seen at various points throughout the season.
As the three of them figure to be the main bench pieces this season, they are each starting to get acclimated to their role, as the second unit continues to provide a positive impact.
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