<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/celtics-news-payton-pritchard-hot-shooting-vs-nuggets-nba-world-wild');   ga('set', 'title', 'Payton Pritchard’s hot shooting vs. Nuggets has NBA world going wild');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Payton-Pritchards-hot-shooting-vs.-Nuggets-has-NBA-world-going-wild.jpg"></figure><h1>Payton Pritchard’s hot shooting vs. Nuggets has NBA world going wild</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-10-04T12:17:40-07:00">October 4th, 12:17pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-10-04T14:42:00-07:00">October 4th, 2:42pm</time><address><a>Matt De Lima</a>Matt De Lima is an Associate Editor for NFL and college football at ClutchPoints. He has been covering sports for over 12 years at sites like Sports Illustrated, The Game Day, and countless others. Born and raised in California, he is a graduate of Virginia Tech and a diehard Hokies fan who now resides in southern Maryland.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Boston Celtics backup point guard Payton Pritchard was the star of the team’s preseason opener win against the Denver Nuggets.</p><p>The 26-year-old, who is the primary backup to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/celtics-news-jrue-holidays-hilarious-revelation-bostons-intense-training-camp">Jrue Holiday</a>, finished 6-of-13 shooting, but every make was from three-point range. He finished with 21 points, six assists and four rebounds in 24 minutes. Pritchard scored all <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPoints/status/1842264858609533387" rel="noopener">21 of his points</a> before the close of the third quarter.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">PAYTON PRITCHARD CASHES IN HIS SIXTH TRIPLE OF THE GAME 😮‍💨<a href="https://t.co/Mll55IIORW">pic.twitter.com/Mll55IIORW</a></p><p>— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPoints/status/1842264858609533387?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Here is Celtics’ Sam Hauser <a href="https://x.com/NoaDalzell/status/1842261439718858824" rel="noopener">clearing some shooting space</a> for Pritchard.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">The on-court chemistry between Sam Hauser and Payton Pritchard remains underrated <a href="https://t.co/Q0BdwSqcLC">pic.twitter.com/Q0BdwSqcLC</a></p><p>— Noa Dalzell 🏀 (@NoaDalzell) <a href="https://twitter.com/NoaDalzell/status/1842261439718858824?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>The NBA on ESPN account <a href="https://x.com/ESPNNBA/status/1842264660097028130" rel="noopener">got in on the action</a> on social media.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Payton Pritchard from DEEP 😮‍💨 <a href="https://t.co/xK9dJiqG2F">pic.twitter.com/xK9dJiqG2F</a></p><p>— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNNBA/status/1842264660097028130?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 4, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>One account on X (@dillyboyq) gave him his <a href="https://x.com/dillyboyq/status/1842264544799817811" rel="noopener">proper preseason props</a>.</p><p>“He is a certified preseason demon so it makes sense.”</p><h2><b>Celtics begin 2024-25 NBA preseason schedule</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/Celtics-Payton-Pritchard-taking-a-shot.jpg"><figcaption>© Peter Casey-Imagn Images</figcaption></figure><p>The Celtics and Nuggets tipped off the NBA’s preseason with two more games later this evening between the Minnesota Timberwolves and Los Angeles Lakers, plus an international affair as the Utah Jazz host the New Zealand Breakers, a team from Australia’s National Basketball League.</p><p>The Celtics’ offseason has included many non-NBA distractions. Jaylen Brown recently made an appearance on the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/celtics-news-jaylen-brown-makes-bold-nba-predictions-under-fire-hot-ones" rel="noopener">YouTube show Hot Ones</a>. There was the whole drama about <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/olympics-news-jayson-tatum-breaks-silence-failing-make-a-single-jumper-team-usa" rel="noopener">Jayson Tatum’s poor play and lack of playing time during the Olympics</a>. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/jaylen-brown-ramped-up-multi-million-dollar-war-nike" rel="noopener">Brown also pushed forward a beef with Nike</a> for not making the Olympic team. </p><p>In the wake of that, <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/celtics-news-jaylen-brown-hilarious-reason-for-creating-new-shoe">Brown created his own signature shoe</a>, The Rover, released under his performance brand 741. The Celtics guard <a href="https://twitter.com/jaredweissnba/status/1839729681118924848?s=46" rel="noopener">explained his reasoning</a> to The Athletic’s Jared Weiss.</p><p>“Honestly, boredom,” he said, per The Athletic’s Jared Weiss. “It would be great for it to be successful. But even if it’s not, who cares? I’m just kind of tired of seeing the same old things, the deals constructed the same way.</p><p>“So hopefully in the next 20 years, even if this isn’t like super successful, that it sparks other athletes, other creators to have the courage to start to build stuff on their own.”</p><p>The Celtics have four more preseason contests before the start of the regular season tips off by hosting the New York Knicks on October 22 at 7:30 p.m. EST.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Payton Pritchard’s hot shooting vs. Nuggets has NBA world going wild

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/celtics-news-blake-griffin-takes-awesome-role-in-payton-pritchards-wedding');   ga('set', 'title', 'Blake Griffin takes awesome role in Payton Pritchard’s wedding');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Celtics-news-Blake-Griffin-takes-awesome-role-in-Payton-Pritchards-wedding.jpg"></figure><h1>Blake Griffin takes awesome role in Payton Pritchard’s wedding</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-08-11T20:05:17-07:00">August 11th, 8:05pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-08-11T20:07:24-07:00">August 11th, 8:07pm</time><address><a>Itiel Estudillo</a>Itiel Estudillo is an NBA and Gaming Journalist at ClutchPoints. He's been working as a sports analyst for two years now and aims to leave a remarkable impression in the industry. When off the keyboard, Itiel participates in the local basketball league and pickup games. But when he's off the court, he also loves to grab his controller and enjoy a vast collection of video games.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Blake Griffin recently officiated his former <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/celtics-news-jayson-tatum-seems-back-up-vengeful-message-olympics">Boston Celtics</a> teammate’s wedding. Jaylen Brown <a href="https://twitter.com/FCHWPO/status/1822782160404676911" rel="noopener">uploaded a video</a> of Griffin officiating the wedding next to Payton Pritchard. Despite only spending one year with the Celtics, it’s clear that Blake built a special bond with his former teammates.</p><p>Griffin has a natural talent for talking on the microphone. Before retiring in 2023, the six-time NBA All-Star would make humorous appearances on TV in either commercials, shows, or stand-up comedy events. Pritchard’s wedding was nothing different for Griffin as he naturally made the audience laugh with his jokes about his former Celtics buddy.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Blake Griffin was officiating Celtics guard Payton Pritchard’s wedding 🙌</p><p>(via <a href="https://twitter.com/FCHWPO?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@FCHWPO</a> / IG)<a href="https://t.co/Q2y0FMjplj">pic.twitter.com/Q2y0FMjplj</a></p><p>— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPoints/status/1822803820625162411?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 12, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><h2><b>Blake Griffin’s impact on the Boston Celtics</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Blake-Griffin-warming-up.jpg"><figcaption>© Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>Blake Griffin surprisingly called it quits after his only season with the Boston Celtics from 2022-23. During that time, Griffin served the team as their seasoned veteran and acted as the leader on the bench. Despite not being able to play at the level he once did, Blake managed to impact the team positively simply by being part of the roster. The Celtics lineup at the time essentially had a young core that needed a bit of guidance.</p><p>It’s clear that Griffin’s former teammates respected him as a leader given how some of them wanted to keep him around. After the veteran decided to retire in 2023, Payton Pritchard shared that the entire Celtics squad wanted him to come back for one more year before calling it quits.</p><blockquote>We begged him to,” Pritchard said when asked during the season why Griffin was no longer playing. “We’ve been begging him to.</blockquote><p>Had Griffin stuck around one year longer, he would’ve been part of the 2024 NBA championship-winning roster. Blake is one of those players who proved that they are deserving of winning a ring. During his prime years, Griffin, alongside Chris Paul and DeAndre Jordan, built Lob City with the Los Angeles Clippers. His Clippers squad proved to be worthy contenders in a stacked Western Conference.</p><p>Suiting up for the Clippers, Griffin averaged 21.6 points, 9.3 rebounds, 4.2 assists, and 1.0 steals per game. Despite not finding any playoff success, he was still an incredible player becoming a six-time All-Star, being named to five All-NBA teams, and winning the 2011 NBA Slam Dunk Contest.</p><p>Playing with the likes of Chris Paul over the years, Griffin was able to gain lots of basketball knowledge. His experience playing for a contending team made him the team leader he was for the Celtics. It would’ve been a fitting retirement had he won the big one before throwing in the towel.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Blake Griffin takes awesome role in Payton Pritchard’s wedding

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/celtics-news-kristaps-porzingis-injury-return-payton-pritchard');   ga('set', 'title', 'Kristaps Porzingis’ imminent Celtics injury return teased by Payton Pritchard');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Celtics-news-Kristaps-Porzingis-imminent-injury-return-teased-by-Payton-Pritchard.jpg"></figure><h1>Kristaps Porzingis’ imminent Celtics injury return teased by Payton Pritchard</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-05-27T11:47:31-07:00">May 27th, 11:47am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-05-27T15:16:39-07:00">May 27th, 3:16pm</time><address><a>Matthew Schmidt</a>Matthew Schmidt has been writing about sports since 2011 and is based in New Jersey. He primarily specializes in NFL these days, but has also extensively covered the NBA and MLB and has written for numerous websites.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Boston Celtics big man Kristaps Porzingis has been sidelined since Game 3 of the first round of the playoffs <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/celtics-news-celtics-kristaps-porzingis-seems-poised-to-miss-game-4-vs-pacers">due to a calf strain</a>, but on Monday, point guard Payton Pritchard provided some optimism about a potential return.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">Kristaps Porzingis ruled OUT for ECF Game 4, but Payton Pritchard gave us an optimistic update after shoot around. </p><p>See more of our conversation on <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Celtics?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Celtics</a> Pre Game Live tonight <a href="https://twitter.com/NBCSBoston?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NBCSBoston</a>. <a href="https://t.co/Jk9XqBbo07">pic.twitter.com/Jk9XqBbo07</a></p><p>— Abby Chin (@tvabby) <a href="https://twitter.com/tvabby/status/1795138482895004106?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 27, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>So I guess that means we can expect to see Porzingis in the NBA Finals, assuming the Celtics get there.</p><p>Right now, Boston holds a commanding 3-0 series lead over the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference Finals and can complete a four-game sweep on Monday night. The C’s rallied back from an 18-point deficit in the third quarter of Game 3 this past Saturday.</p><p>Pritchard is averaging 7.7 points, 2.5 assists and 2.2 rebounds over 21.8 minutes per game while shooting 48 percent from the floor, 45.2 percent from three-point range and 90 percent from the free-throw line.</p><p>The 26-year-old logged 9.6 points, 3.4 assists and 3.2 boards on 46.8/38.5/82.1 shooting splits during the regular season. He particularly had a strong month of April, when he posted 18.8 points per game across eight contests.</p><h2><b>Kristaps Porzingis is key to the Celtics winning a championship</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Kristaps-Porzingis-3.jpg"><figcaption>Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>The Celtics have been able to get by without Porzingis through the first three rounds, but it will definitely be difficult for them to <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/celtics-news-stephen-a-smith-hits-celtics-title-chances-kristaps-porzingis-truth-bomb">win a championship without him</a>.</p><p>More than likely, Boston will be facing the Dallas Mavericks in the finals, as they also have a 3-0 lead over the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference Finals. The Mavericks are absolutely better than the competition the C’s have been facing in the East, so Porzingis will almost certainly be needed.</p><p>In 57 games during the regular season, Porzingis registered 20.1 points, 7.2 rebounds and 1.9 blocks over 29.6 minutes per game while making 51.6 percent of his shots, 37.5 percent of his long-range attempts and 85.8 percent of his free throws. He also recorded .226 win shares per 48 minutes in what was the best all-around season of his career.</p><p>While Porzingis obviously brings significant value on the offensive end due to his versatility, where he is most vital is on the defensive end. The 28-year-old is an outstanding rim protector and also possesses the athleticism to guard the pick-and-roll and defend in space.</p><p>With Porzingis on the floor, the Celtics boast what is probably the most talented starting lineup in basketball. A trio of Porzingis, Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown is lethal on both ends, and Jrue Holiday and Derrick White are no slouches, either. It would also allow the older Al Horford to come off the bench, limiting his minutes to help preserve him.</p><p>Porzingis began his career with the New York Knicks back in 2015 after being selected with the fourth overall pick of the NBA Draft. He spent the first three-and-a-half seasons of his career with the Knicks before being traded to Dallas in January 2019.</p><p>The duo of Porzingis and Luka Doncic seemed promising, but it ultimately didn’t work out, leading to the Mavs sending the 7-foot-3 star to the Washington Wizards midway through the 2021-22 campaign. Porzingis was then dealt to the Celtics in a three-team trade last June.</p><p>We’ll see if Porzingis is able to fully recover in time for the NBA Finals, which begin on June 6.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Kristaps Porzingis’ imminent Celtics injury return teased by Payton Pritchard

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/celtics-news-payton-pritchard-jaylen-brown-all-nba-snub');   ga('set', 'title', 'Celtics’ Payton Pritchard sets record straight on Jaylen Brown All-NBA snub');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Payton-Pritchard-sets-record-straight-on-Jaylen-Brown-All-NBA-snub.jpg"></figure><h1>Celtics’ Payton Pritchard sets record straight on Jaylen Brown All-NBA snub</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-05-23T12:51:02-07:00">May 23rd, 12:51pm</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-05-23T12:51:02-07:00">May 23rd, 12:51pm</time><address><a>Matthew Schmidt</a>Matthew Schmidt has been writing about sports since 2011 and is based in New Jersey. He primarily specializes in NFL these days, but has also extensively covered the NBA and MLB and has written for numerous websites.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>Boston Celtics wing Jaylen Brown did not make an All-NBA team, and backup guard Payton Pritchard is not too thrilled about it.</p><p>When asked about the <a href="https://www.nba.com/news/2023-24-all-nba-teams-announced" rel="noopener">All-NBA teams</a>, Pritchard congratulated teammate Jayson Tatum for making the First Team, but then said that Brown absolutely should have been on the list somewhere.</p><figure class="op-interactive"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p dir="ltr" lang="en">"That was a snub for sure… JB's been terrific all year, two way player, so he definitely deserved to be on there." </p><p>Payton Pritchard reacts to Jaylen Brown not making All-NBA 👀</p><p>(via <a href="https://twitter.com/NBCSCeltics?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@NBCSCeltics</a>)<a href="https://t.co/E0FcBxTc3f">pic.twitter.com/E0FcBxTc3f</a></p><p>— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) <a href="https://twitter.com/ClutchPoints/status/1793721220195889582?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 23, 2024</a></p></blockquote><p><script async="" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></p></figure><p>Pritchard wonders how the Celtics—a team that easily finished with the best record in basketball at 64-18—could only have one player make the All-NBA teams, and he makes a solid point.</p><p>Boston was the most dominant club during the regular season by a fairly wide margin, and Brown was the second-leading scorer on the squad. He averaged 23 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.2 steals over 33.5 minutes per game while shooting 49.9 percent from the floor, 35.4 percent from three-point range and 70.3 percent from the free-throw line.</p><p><a href="https://clutchpoints.com/reasons-celtics-jaylen-brown-massive-all-nba-snub">Brown is also</a> the definition of a two-way player, as he is a terrific defender in addition to being a very good offensive player.</p><p>The 27-year-old specifically had a great argument over Tyrese Haliburton, who made the All-NBA Third Team.</p><h2><b>Jaylen Brown is still somewhat polarizing, even among Celtics fans</b></h2><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Jaylen-Brown-1-1.jpg"><figcaption>David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure><p>There is no question that Brown is a good player. The question is, how good?</p><p>Tatum is clearly the Celtics’ best player. I don’t think anyone would deny that. But one can make a legitimate argument that Brown is not even the second-best player on his own team.</p><p>Let’s face it: Kristaps Porzingis is really good. Now, obviously, Brown is more consistent, as he played in 70 games. He isn’t exactly an ironman, but he definitely does not have the same type of checkered injury as Porzingis, who appeared in just 57 contests during the regular season and is currently sidelined with a calf injury in the playoffs.</p><p>When both players are healthy, however, Porzingis may actually be the more impactful Celtic.</p><p>Porzingis was significantly more efficient than Brown, posting 51.6/37.5/85.8 shooting splits. Plus, as good as Brown is defensively, his presence is not nearly as felt on that end of the floor as Porzingis, who is a fantastic rim defender and completely changes the game for Boston.</p><p>This isn’t meant to turn into a Brown vs. Porzingis comparison. It’s merely meant to display that Brown, while very good, is not quite elite. He also still has his fair share of detractors even in Beantown, mainly for his limited bag offensively and for his penchant for somewhat disappearing for stretches.</p><p>Obviously, Brown was one of the biggest reasons why the Celtics won Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Indiana Pacers. He hit the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/celtics-news-jaylen-brown-reveals-wild-prediction-fueled-clutch-bucket-vs-pacers">game-tying three-pointer</a> that sent the affair into overtime, and he finished with 26 points, seven rebounds, five assists and three steals on the night.</p><p>No one is questioning his importance to the C’s, and again, if I had to pick, I probably would have gone with Brown over Haliburton on the All-NBA Third Team. But there are some areas in Brown’s game that can be frustrating, and he isn’t quite outstanding enough to be a shoo-in for any of these types of accolades.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

Celtics’ Payton Pritchard sets record straight on Jaylen Brown All-NBA snub

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" xml:lang="en" lang="en">    <head>        <script>   (function(i, s, o, g, r, a, m) {     i["GoogleAnalyticsObject"] = r;     i[r] = i[r] || function() {       (i[r].q = i[r].q || []).push(arguments)     }, i[r].l = 1 * new Date();     a = s.createElement(o),       m = s.getElementsByTagName(o)[0];     a.async = 1;     a.src = g;     m.parentNode.insertBefore(a, m)   })(window, document, "script", "https://www.google-analytics.com/analytics.js", "ga");   ga('create', 'UA-66147751-16', {     'storage': 'none',     'clientId': localStorage.getItem('ga:clientId')   });   ga(function(tracker) {     localStorage.setItem('ga:clientId', tracker.get('clientId'));   });   ga('set', 'checkProtocolTask', null);      ga('set', 'page', '/celtics-guard-payton-pritchards-hilarious-revelation-2024-playoff-success');   ga('set', 'title', 'Celtics guard Payton Pritchard’s hilarious revelation on 2024 playoff success');   ga('send', 'pageview');</script>        <style type="text/css" media="all">            body {    background: transparent;    margin: 0px;}h1, h2, h3 {    color: #DDDDDD;    font-family: "SFUIText-Semibold";    margin: 30px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 21px;    line-height: 125%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}header {    margin: 0px;    height: 0px;    display: none;}p {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 15px 15px 15px 15px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}p > img {    margin-left: -15px;    width: calc(100% + 30px);}a {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;    text-decoration: underline;}ul {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 3px 10px 3px 10px;    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}ol {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    font-size: 17px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.23px;}img {    margin: 0px;    width: 100%;    height: auto;}blockquote {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.8);    font-family: "SFUIText-Medium";    margin: 30px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 19px;    line-height: 135%;    letter-spacing: -0.41px;}blockquote p {    margin: 0px;}.op-tracker, .op-ad {    display: none;    height: 0px;}article > figure {    margin: 0px;}figcaption {    color: rgba(255, 255, 255, 0.7);    font-family: "SFUIText-Regular";    margin: 10px 15px 30px 15px;    font-size: 13px;}iframe {    width: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;    margin: 0px;    border: 0;}.vine-embed {    height: __SCREEN_SIZE_WIDTH__;}.twitter-tweet, .instagram-media {    margin-left: 15px !important;    margin-right: 15px !important;    width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;}.clutchpoints-widget {    /*margin: 10px 15px 10px 15px !important;*/    /*margin-top: 1px !important;*/    padding-top: 10px;    /*margin-left: 15px !important;*/    /*margin-right: 15px !important;*/    /*width: __SCREEN_CONTENT_SIZE_WIDTH__ !important;*/}        </style>        <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" />    </head>    <body>        <article id="mvp-content-main"><header><figure><img src="https://wp.clutchpoints.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/Payton-Pritchards-hilarious-revelation-on-2024-playoff-success.jpg"></figure><h1>Celtics guard Payton Pritchard’s hilarious revelation on 2024 playoff success</h1><time class="op-published" datetime="2024-05-05T10:30:29-07:00">May 5th, 10:30am</time><time class="op-modified" datetime="2024-05-05T10:30:29-07:00">May 5th, 10:30am</time><address><a>Jackson Stone</a>Jackson Stone is a Mercer University senior from Atlanta on track to graduate with a BA in communications. A lifelong sports lover, Jackson is a die-hard fan of all Atlanta teams. He joined ClutchPoints in 2023.</address><h3 class="op-kicker">NBA</h3><figure class="op-ad"></figure></header><p>On Wednesday evening, Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics officially punched their ticket to the second round of the 2024 NBA playoffs with a thrashing of the Miami Heat in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference first round, exacting some revenge on (what was left of) a squad that sent them home in 2023. <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/celtics-news-jayson-tatum-eye-opening-take-toughness-criticisms-will-fire-up-boston">Tatum didn’t necessarily</a> have a dominant series from a stat perspective but didn’t need to, as the <a href="https://clutchpoints.com/celtics-news-jaylen-browns-hilarious-graduation-revelation-thrashing-of-heat">Celtics used a</a> balanced offensive attack and a suffocating defense to quickly send home a Miami squad operating without both Jimmy Butler and Terry Rozier.</p><p>One person who has emerged as <a href="https://twitter.com/NoaDalzellNBA/status/1786445447004926129" rel="noopener">a reliable contributor</a> this season for the Celtics off of the bench is backup point guard Payton Pritchard, who has seen increased minutes following the departures of Malcolm Brogdon and Marcus Smart this past offseason.</p><p>Recently, Pritchard–who had some strong moments in the series vs the Heat–was asked about what has changed from last year to this year in terms of finding success, and his answer was bluntly honest–and hilarious.</p><p>“I mean, I didn’t get to play last year, so that’s probably the difference,” said Pritchard, via Noa Dalzell of CelticsBlog on X, the social media platform formerly referred to as Twitter. “I was watching rather than out here playing, so that’s the difference.”</p><p>Indeed, Pritchard didn’t have a lot of opportunities in the 2023 playoffs, as the Celtics’ guard rotation was solidified with Malcolm Brogdon, Marcus Smart, and Derrick White. The fact that they replaced Holiday and Smart with just one player at the guard position in Jrue Holiday meant increased minutes for Pritchard this season, and the former Oregon Ducks star has seized the opportunity, to say the least.</p><h2><b>Can the Celtics finally hoist Banner 18?</b></h2><p>The Celtics have been on deep playoff runs in five out of the last seven postseasons and are hoping to finally break through this year and win their first championship since the days of Paul Pierce and Kevin Garnett back in 2008. Throughout the course of the year, the Celtics were the best team in the NBA by a country mile, finishing the year with 64 wins, a total that probably could have been more if Boston had more incentive to try hard to win games down the stretch.</p><p>In Game 4 of the series vs Miami, the Celtics received a blow when it was announced that Kristaps Porzingis–who was a large part of the diversification of their offense this year–had sustained a calf injury and would likely miss the entirety of the second round. However, the Celtics still have an immense amount of depth and a reliable center in Al Horford who can at least somewhat replicate Porzingis’ ability to stretch the floor and protect the rim on defense.</p><p>It’s unlikely that the Celtics–barring any more injures–will receive much of a test on their way to the NBA Finals, especially considering how much more mature the team seems as compared to prior  years. However, in order to break through and win the championship, it’s likely that Boston will need Porzingis back in the fray.</p><figure class="op-tracker"></figure></article>    </body></html>

2023-24 SEASON STATS
PTS	REB	AST	BLK	STL
9.6	3.2	3.4	0.1	0.5

2023-24 SEASON STATS
PTS	REB	AST	BLK	STL
9.6	3.2	3.4	0.1	0.5

Payton Pritchard

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