Why Payton Pritchard Deserves a Start…
Payton Pritchard has been thriving like a sunflower in a desert, nabbing the 6th Man of the Year award with style! With last season’s numbers making even calculators sweat—14.3 points, 3.8 rebounds, 3.5 assists, and shooting stats as accurate as a GPS on a straight road—he’s ready to jump from the bench to the starting lineup. He’s only started 17 of 347 games, and with Anfernee Simons possibly getting more packing tape than minutes in Boston, it’s time to flip the Pritchard switch. Why keep Simons when you’ve got a Pritchard who defends better than a kangaroo in a boxing match?
Some even claim he could be an All-Star with just a pinch of magic and fairy dust, like Celticsblog’s own Not Dalzell suggesting he could be the next basketball wizard. Jayson Tatum is out, so Pritchard might just be dusting off his cape this season behind Jaylen Brown and Derrick White. Boston must let this bird fly and find out if Pritchard’s got what it takes to lead the team. If Pritchard starts shooting more bounce shots than a pogo stick on a trampoline, the Celtics might as well discover if they’re witnessing greatness or just a really excited benchwarmer!
