The Boston Celtics opened the season with a 121-113 loss to the Detroit Pistons but have been on a roll ever since.
The Celtics will enter Sunday’s road game against the Orlando Magic on a four-game winning streak.
Payton Pritchard’s scoring off the bench has been one of the reasons for Boston’s recent success. He scored 28 points in a victory over Chicago on Monday, and tossed in 30 when the Celtics beat the Bulls again on Friday.
In addition to his 30-point performance, Pritchard had three rebounds, three assists and two steals in Friday’s win.
“(Head coach Joe Mazzulla) challenged me,” Pritchard said. “I feel like the first four games (this season) my defensive activity and my rebounding have been poor, so challenging me to step up in those areas.”
Pritchard is averaging 16.6 points per game in Boston’s five contests.
“I think Payton’s a guy that gets better every year, and I think the sky’s the limit for him,” Mazzulla said. “I think he hasn’t completely tapped into the player that he can become, and that’s just being complete on both ends of the floor and not being defined by one thing. I think in tonight’s game, you saw the absolute best version of him.
“Now, it takes a ton of energy, and you’re not going to be able to do that every single night, but the sky’s the limit for him, and as we continue to grow as a team, and he continues to grow as a player, being a complete player on both ends of the floor really helps us take it to a different level. So he’s got more in the tank. He’s a kid that can continue to get better and better.”
Orlando is coming off a split at Toronto and looked like a completely different team in each matchup. The Magic dropped a 129-99 decision at Toronto on Wednesday then defeated the Raptors 121-114 on the road two nights later.
Toronto had a two-point lead midway through the fourth quarter Friday, but Orlando ended the game on a 21-12 run.
“Big-time response,” Orlando’s Franz Wagner said. “Our intensity was way better and we had great energy, even through their runs there in the fourth.
“We have evidence of how tough we are and the grit that this group has. Obviously, we didn’t show it so far in every game this season. We talked about that coming into the game. I think it was really good to see that. We showed that (Friday) and that stuff has to become a habit. If it does, I think we’ll be a really good team.”
The Magic went 2-1 on their first road trip and return home where they are 0-2.
“Looking at the two games (against Toronto), the previous game we started out pretty strong and kind of wilted, and this one we didn’t back down,” Orlando coach Sean Sweeney said. “We stuck with it the whole way.
“Great road trip. Now let’s sustain it at home and give the fans something to cheer about and go get one on Sunday.”
