Celtics' Payton Pritchard: Shines off bench once again
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Pritchard recorded 19 points (5-8 FG, 5-7 3Pt, 4-4 FT), two rebounds and a steal across 19 minutes off the bench in Saturday's 124-118 win over the Pistons.
Pritchard has scored at least 15 points while draining at least five threes in his last two outings off the bench, and the former Oregon standout is enjoying an excellent start to the campaign. His overall fantasy upside shouldn't be very high due to the uncertainty that comes with his bench role. That said, Pritchard is turning quite a few heads with his play as an elite three-point shooting threat in an already-stacked Boston roster.
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Celtics' Payton Pritchard: Strong numbers off bench
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Pritchard registered 15 points (5-11 FG, 5-10 3Pt), one rebound and two assists in 28 minutes during Thursday's 122-102 win over the Wizards.
The Celtics cruised to an easy victory against the Wizards, and Pritchard made his presence felt off the bench with his efficient shooting from beyond the arc. He was limited to just three points across 25 minutes in the season-opening win against the Knicks on Tuesday, but he bounced back admirably here. If Pritchard finds a way to score in double digits off the bench regularly, he could play his way into fantasy relevancy in category-based leagues and deep formats.
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Celtics' Payton Pritchard: Struggles from the field
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Pritchard provided three points (1-10 FG, 1-9 3Pt), four rebounds and four assists over 25 minutes during Tuesday's 132-109 win over the Knicks.
Pritchard was part of a messy fourth quarter where the Celtics missed their last 13 three-point attempts as they tried to break the single-game record for most made threes. The game was well in hand for Boston by that point, so hunting for an NBA record was all in good fun. Expect Pritchard's shot to return Friday in Washington, and he should continue his role as a score-first guard off the bench moving forward.
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Celtics' Payton Pritchard: Coming off bench Opening Night
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Pritchard will come off the bench for Tuesday's game against the Knicks.
Pritchard entered the starting lineup often during the preseason, though Jrue Holiday will reclaim his starting spot Opening Night. Pritchard will likely play a significant role off the bench, but he will have to compete for playing time with Sam Hauser and Jaden Springer on the wing.
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Celtics' Payton Pritchard: Drains five threes Tuesday
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Pritchard scored 15 points (5-11 FG, 5-10 3Pt) while adding three rebounds, two assists and two steals in 29 minutes during Tuesday's 119-118 preseason loss to the Raptors.
Getting the start in place of Jrue Holiday (rest), Pritchard put on an impressive display from long range. The fifth-year guard will be the floor leader for Boston's second unit this season, with his primary fantasy value coming from beyond the arc -- Pritchard averaged a career-high 1.8 threes per game in 2023-24 on 38.5 percent shooting.
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Celtics' Payton Pritchard: Hands out nine dimes
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Pritchard delivered 19 points (7-13 FG, 5-11 3Pt), five rebounds and nine assists across 24 minutes in Sunday's 115-111 preseason win over the Raptors.
Pritchard had an excellent showing, and there's no question he took advantage of the opportunity after the Celtics decided to rest several players who featured in the win over the 76ers on Saturday. He will be the backup guard behind Jrue Holiday and Derrick White, but given how the Celtics' rotation is currently constructed, Pritchard is not expected to have a lot of fantasy upside outside of being a streaming alternative in deep formats.
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Celtics' Payton Pritchard: Gets spot start
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Pritchard will start Sunday's preseason game against the Raptors, Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca reports.
Pritchard steps into the starting lineup with Boston electing to rest the majority of their key players. Pritchard will likely be the focal point offensively for a very limited Celtics squad.
Pritchard finished with 21 points (6-13 FG, 6-12 3Pt, 3-4 FT), four rebounds and six assists across 25 minutes in Friday's 107-103 preseason win over the Nuggets.
There's no question Pritchard made the most of his opportunity in this preseason opener, carrying the Celtics in scoring and showing he's ready to handle a bigger role off the bench if called upon duty. Pritchard averaged a career-high 9.6 points per game in 2023-24 while making 38.5 percent of his threes over 82 regular-season games, so he should be a reliable weapon off the bench for Boston, though his fantasy upside will be minimal if he continues to play almost exclusively off the bench.
Celtics' Payton Pritchard: Drains clutch 3 in Game 5 win
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Pritchard posted three points (1-1 FG, 1-1 3Pt) in under one minute of playing time during Monday's 106-88 win over Dallas in Game 5 of the NBA Finals.
As he did periodically during the regular season and postseason, Pritchard once again drained a half-court end-of-quarter three just when the Celtics needed a boost. In Game 5, he heaved a half-court triple with under four seconds to help Boston take a 21-point lead into halftime. It was a lead the Celtics would never relinquish as Boston earned its 18th banner. Pritchard hit three triples over five 2024 NBA Finals games. He has three years remaining on his current contract, so expect more off-the-bench heroics moving forward.
Celtics' Payton Pritchard: Records eight points off bench
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Pritchard logged eight points (3-4 FG, 2-3 3Pt) and two assists over 23 minutes during Tuesday's 133-128 overtime win over the Pacers in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Celtics are using a very tight eight-man rotation right now, but Pritchard is pretty clearly the sixth man for the foreseeable future. He's been excellent through 11 playoff appearances, averaging 7.8 points, 2.5 assists and 2.3 rebounds while hitting 47.0 percent from the field and 44.7 percent from beyond the arc.
Celtics' Payton Pritchard: Leads bench again in Game 2
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Pritchard notched 13 points (6-10 FG, 1-4 3Pt), four assists, two rebounds and one steal over 20 minutes in Thursday's 118-94 loss to the Cavaliers in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
Pritchard once again provided a spark off the Celtics bench in Thursday's contest, leading all Boston bench players in scoring and assists while ending as one of five Celtics in double figures in scoring in a losing effort. Pritchard has had a strong conference semifinals series through two games, reaching double figures in both games while playing at least 20 minutes off the bench in both contests. It will be key for the Celtics to get contributions from Pritchard and the rest of the bench this series, and we will likely continue to see Pritchard earn a large chunk of minutes on the second unit.
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Celtics' Payton Pritchard: Returning to second unit
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Pritchard will come off the bench for Sunday's Game 1 against Miami.
After starting the final two regular-season contests, Pritchard will return to his typical bench role while Jrue Holiday and Derrick White anchor the backcourt. In addition to the aforementioned guards, Boston will roll with its fully healthy starting lineup Sunday, featuring Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Kristaps Porzingis.
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Celtics' Payton Pritchard: Flirts with triple-double
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Pritchard recorded 38 points (15-21 FG, 4-6 3Pt, 4-4 FT), nine rebounds and 12 assists across 44 minutes during Sunday's 132-122 victory over the Wizards.
Two days after scoring a career-high 31 points, Pritchard followed that up with a 38-12-9 line. He was one rebound shy of notching the first triple-double of his career, and he played a season-high 44 minutes with the Celtics resting all of their starters plus Al Horford (rest). Pritchard ends the regular season recording career highs across most statistical categories, and in April, he averaged 18.8 points on 55.9 percent shooting, 3.6 rebounds and 7.0 assists over 29.4 minutes per game.
