A season ago, at the NBA’s 2023 trade deadline, reserve Boston Celtics combo guard Payton Pritchard wanted to see the floor so badly, he asked to be traded to another team. Instead, the Celtics found a way to get him into the rotation more, especially this season, and the change has been good for both sides. “You go through stretches, you aren’t playing well,” he explained via MassLive’s Souichi Terada. “It’s tough.”
“But you have to look at yourself in the mirror every morning and know what you’re capable of and the work you put in,” he added. “And I think that’s really what it comes down to, all the work, the hours I’ve put in — it’s just built confidence. Now I just feel like I can go against anybody.”
“I’m ready for it,” said the Oregon native of his increased opportunity.
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“This is what I want to do and be a part of this,” Pritchard explained. “So that’s what I talked about last year and that’s what I wanted. I knew I could contribute, and I wanted to help win a championship.”
Boston has not had a clearer path to the finals in over a decade, if not longer, but will likely face one of some truly challenging West ball clubs, particularly the reigning champion Denver Nuggets.
And it is not all that inconceivable that the Celtics may get a key boost from a player who hardly saw the floor last season. Things can change in a hurry in this league.
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