NEW YORK \u2014 With six minutes left in the fourth quarter of the Celtics\u2019 game against the Nets on Saturday night, Jrue Holiday drove into the paint and sprayed a pass to Payton Pritchard in the right corner. Pritchard quickly fired up a 3-pointer that slid through the net, one slice of his ho-hum 22-point night that helped Boston eke out a 115-113 win.<\/p>\n
Unbeknownst to most, including Pritchard himself, that 3-pointer was a record-breaking shot. It was Pritchard\u2019s 219th 3 off the bench this season, passing Wayne Ellington\u2019s record of 218 set in 2017-18.<\/p>\n
Pritchard added one more 3-pointer before game\u2019s end, and he has 14 more games to truly extend his mark. But on Saturday night, he mostly shrugged off the milestone.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt just means I did my job off the bench at a high level,\u201d he said, \u201cand hopefully I can continue to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n
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Still, an NBA record is an NBA record. It must mean something, right?<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s no records, there\u2019s no awards that I ever look at,\u201d Pritchard said. \u201cIt\u2019s all about self-improvement, looking at every game, what can I do to keep growing and keep bettering myself? And ultimately that\u2019s all that matters to me, is just trying to take another step, another step. So hopefully I can keep that going.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Celtics were less dismissive about the feat, and they were pleased to see their hard-working teammate earn some deserved recognition.<\/p>\n
\u201cAny time you hold a record in the NBA, regardless of whatever it is, is special,\u201d forward Jayson Tatum said. \u201cI\u2019m happy for him. He works really, really hard. Everybody knows that his ability to stretch the floor and take over in stretches sometimes has really helped us and helped him. [He] helped us win a championship. We\u2019re very, very lucky to have him.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pritchard has come off the bench in all 67 games he has played this season and has emerged as the heavy favorite to be named NBA Sixth Man of the Year. He has taken a substantial leap, too, currently averaging career highs in points (14.1), rebounds (3.7), assists (3.4), steals (0.9), field-goal percentage (47.1), and 3-point percentage (41.8).<\/p>\n
Pritchard has seemingly endless range on his jumpers and believes he can fire away comfortably from the edge of the halfcourt circle. But coach Joe Mazzulla has stressed that Pritchard\u2019s value goes well beyond his scoring explosions.<\/p>\n
His full-court ball pressure is capable of changing a game\u2019s tone, and in recent years he has become a more versatile defender. In the Celtics\u2019 loss to the Thunder last week, the 6-foot-1-inch Pritchard frequently switched onto MVP favorite Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and mostly held his own against the 6-6 guard.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think as you start to develop a defensive identity, his ability to want to take on great matchups has been big for us at certain times,\u201d Mazzulla said. \u201cBut he\u2019s also been able to guard off-ball guys. He did a little of that [against the Heat on Friday]. So it can change the dynamics of the game by not getting screened off the ball and making different plays there. Just as much versatility he has on the offensive end, he really takes pride in developing on the defensive end.\u201d<\/p>\n
Pritchard said he has gained immense confidence as an offensive player this year, partly because his teammates have empowered him to thrive. This 3-point record is the latest example.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not going to have the ball in my hands all the time, so where can I make the difference and help Jayson, Jaylen [Brown], [Kristaps Porzingis] and those guys out?\u201d Pritchard said. \u201cSo I think I\u2019m figuring it out and I think there\u2019s still more to come, and I can get better and better from there.\u201d<\/p>\n
***<\/p>\n
Cameron Johnson\u2019s potential game-winning half-court heave came just after the buzzer on Saturday and caromed off the rim anyway. But the Nets were a bit frustrated that no foul was called on the play. According to the NBA\u2019s Last Two Minute report that was released Sunday, however, Holiday made clean contact with the ball when it was in Johnson\u2019s hands as time expired.<\/p>\n
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Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him @adamhimmelsbach.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Along with setting the 3-point record, Pritchard is averaging career highs in points, rebounds, assists, steals, field-goal percentage, and 3-point percentage.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":43950,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[133],"class_list":["post-43949","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nba","tag-celtics"],"yoast_head":"\n
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