Boston newcomer Jrue Holiday is impressed by Payton Pritchard’s form: ‘He’s a natural bucket’

Jrue Holiday is lauded as one of the best defenders in basketball, and if he ever gives praise to an offensive talent, you know he’s gotta be a special one. Ever since he landed in Boston, the former Bucks guard can’t help but be impressed by Payton Pritchard’s set of skills, who has been the most impressive Celtics player this preseason.

“He can hoop. He’s just a natural bucket,” Holiday shared of his teammate this Monday. “The way that he plays is so easy. It looks like it just comes naturally to him.”

According to the veteran star, he’s thought highly of the young talent for quite some time now, not necessarily since he became a part of the Massachusetts franchise. Now that they are teammates, Holiday says he can’t wait to feed off each other on court.

"He can hoop… the way he plays is so easy, looks like it comes naturally to him."

Jrue Holiday talks about what he's seen from Payton Pritchard so far ☘️ pic.twitter.com/vjQqdxHgCO

— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) October 16, 2023

“It’s always fun to watch him play. But playing with him, he’s great to play off of,” the 33-year-old said. “Obviously the shooter that he is, he can either play off-ball or you play off the ball with him and he has the ball. A very versatile player.”

As for Pritchard, he shares the same amount of respect for the ex-Bucks star and admitted his excitement about learning for him. “Jrue is an unbelievable player,” he shared. “So for me to have somebody like that, who I can learn so much from defensively, offensively, just how he attacks the game is incredible. I’m definitely going to be picking his brain a lot this year.”

According to the established point guard, he wishes to remain humble and learn as much as possible from Payton too.

“There are things I feel like I can get from him – even how he comes off the screen and shoots it,” Holiday revealed. “He’s a couple of inches shorter than me, but he gets his shot off every time and it’s pure. So I think it’s just having a relationship, building that chemistry, and then just keeping that line of communication open is important.”

Coach Joe Mazzulla also praises the young point guard for his desire to communicate and show initiative around his teammates

Whenever a player shows willingness to learn, it is the perfect scenario for any coach. In Joe Mazzulla’s case, he loves the fact that Pritchard always presents himself as one eager to learn and lead by example.

“The most important thing is that he asks questions. He wants to understand,” the trainer shared. “And so he’s asking me, he’s asking the assistants, he’s asking his teammates questions, and that gives him the ability to communicate with his teammates. He’s doing a great job of recognizing situational basketball on both ends of the floor and how we can be better at it.”

As the 25-year-old is about to embark into his fourth season, the young point guard expects to breakout and prove why he earned a new contract extension in Boston. Also, with the departures of Marcus Smart and Malcolm Brogdon, he’s ready to embrace a new roles inside the Celtics squad.

“For me, it’s just controlling what I can control and that’s showing up every day, getting my work in, and attacking the minutes that I do get,” Pritchard expressed. “So defensively, offensively, whatever that is, that’s kind of where my head’s at. Whatever I get, I’m gonna go out and play hard, play aggressive, and lay it all out.”