From Pritchard’s passing to playoff dreams

Payton Pritchard is set to push his assists above five per game, while Jaylen Brown could climb into the league’s top five scorers. Derrick White aims for top-30 in steals and blocks, and Neemias Queta may see 20-plus minutes nightly.

Boston might face both a five-game skid and streak, before finishing 44-38 as the 6-seed. And yes, predicting this season is like predicting your grandma’s poker hand — you just nod and hope she doesn’t raise the stakes.