Jaylen Brown and Payton Pritchard were an unstoppable tandem for the Boston Celtics on Friday night, pacing the Celtics’ 125-117 over the shorthanded Toronto Raptors at TD Garden.
Pritchard led Boston with 27 points and eight assists in 30 minutes, while Brown scored 25 points and led the team with eight rebounds. In the process, they became the first pair of Celtics teammates with at least 25 points, seven assists and five rebounds in the same game since Larry Bird and Danny Ainge in 1987.
Brown’s been putting up those kinds of numbers all season, but Pritchard has stepped up lately. Over his last 10 games, he’s averaged 19.3 points, 6.0 assists and 5.1 rebounds.
After the game, Brown praised Pritchard for his recent hot streak and improved scoring.
“Payton has been ballin’,” Brown said during his postgame press conference. “We’ve leaned on Payton to almost be like a go-to guy at times, because he has that ability to break guys down, get into the paint, use his body well, and he’s getting better at it. I think he’s been in my bag for sure, my mid-range bag.”
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The reigning NBA Sixth Man of the Year has flourished in his first season as a starter, establishing himself as one of the team’s most reliable scoring options. That’s helped take some of the pressure off Brown in Jayson Tatum’s absence.
Pritchard will try to keep rolling and help Boston end its homestand on a high note against the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday.
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