Sixth man or starter. Doesn’t matter. Payton Pritchard is ready to light it up.
In his age-28 season, with changes to the roster and a Sixth Man of the Year award already on the mantle, Payton Pritchard could be forgiven for swaggering into Media Day and treating the starting job as unquestionably his.
There was plenty to take from the former Oregon guard’s Media Day duties, but a few quotes stood out:
“It does not matter to me. Starting or coming off the bench is something that I have no control over. That’s Joe’s decision. My only mindset is when I touch that floor, I bring my best.”
Like his new backcourt mate Anfernee Simons, it’s winning — not starting — that Pritchard is focusing on this year. In a season where championship ambitions are more aspirational than rational, the average fan or front office member may have feared that personal motivations could take precedence over team goals. That does not appear to be the case for the sixth-year guard.
Payton being ready to fill any role will be sweet music in Joe Mazzulla’s ears. Tied down to a bargain contract until the end of the 27/28 season, Payton may well earn that starting spot in a training camp battle with Simons but making it clear that he’s a success-first, spotlight-second player will continue to keep him in the highest regard at TD Garden.
“When my feet touch the floor, that is the spark.”
Further expanding upon the question of starting or subbing in, Pritchard ran with the idea of providing “the spark,” irregardless of his entry point into the contest. “If I’m coming off the bench, I will not be sour about it. I’ll be ready for when the six-minute mark comes, or whatever. I’m going to come in with the same type of energy and perform and play like you can’t take me off the court.“
Last year Pritchard posted a staggering +23.2 net rating in the first quarter of games for the Celtics, per NBA.com. More often than not, Payton was clocking in around that six-minute mark and, true to form, he made it very difficult for Mazzulla to sub him back out. Among regular contributors, Pritchard had the second-highest first-quarter net rating of any player on the roster, trailing only Luke Kornet. While many of us feel that Pritchard deserves that starting spot on Opening Night this season, perhaps that thrust will remain best utilized spearheading a second wave of offense after the game gets underway.
“I think play-making, making the game even easier for my teammates. That can be with passing, but also being a great screen setter and stuff like that. I feel like the gravity that I can attract off the ball, obviously, people don’t want me to shoot threes, so how do I use that to help teammates around me?”
In spite of just having the best individual season of his career, the 6-foot guard spoke to the areas he’ll look to improve this year. For the second consecutive Media Day, Pritchard referenced the importance of pull-up three-point shooting, but his main focus was on playmaking.
Pritch knows circumstances are different this year. Last season, in 322 regular-season minutes without Tatum or Brown on the floor, Payton Pritchard lineups still boasted a +5.2 net rating, equivalent to being the fourth-best team in the regular season. That being said, those minutes only accounted for 14% of his total regular-season minutes. This season, I would expect to see closer to 40% of Payton’s minutes coming without Brown on the court and, with that, he will slide up a rung on the ladder of responsibility
Last year, Pritchard was a lethal play finisher, recording a TS% most big men would envy. This year, the true test of his game will be sustaining that efficiency as he becomes a higher priority on the scouting report, while also filling the creation hole left by JT’s injury and the noteworthy departures of the offseason. It is a tall task for a pint-sized point guard, but it seems the focus has been there this offseason to aid his attempt to handle the added offensive burden.
Media Day is always an exciting time. It represents hope, it signals that the off-season is drawing to a close and it’s got me bouncing off the walls waiting to see this team in action. Pritchard spoke well. He didn’t tell us that he added X pounds of muscle or that he grew an inch or two. He spoke about his willingness to sacrifice, his will to win and he gave a sneaky preview of the areas of his game to watch in the first few weeks of the 25/26 season.
That “spark” is in the air.
