Top 5 teams that can land Payton Pritchard if he exits the Celtics this summer
Payton Pritchard has spent his entire career with the Boston Celtics after they selected him 26th overall in the 2020 NBA Draft. However, he has not received much playing time in his three professional seasons, with his minutes decreasing each season thus far.
Pritchard has now asked out of Boston, according to Jay King and Jared Weiss of The Athletic, who reported:
"Payton Pritchard has made it clear he hopes to be traded this summer, according to multiple team sources, so will the Celtics move him if they trade one of their core guards?"
Pritchard seemingly has no clear path to an increase in playing time if he remains in Boston and there are no roster changes. The Celtics currently have at least $18 million committed to Jaylen Brown, Malcolm Brogdon, Marcus Smart and Derrick White in 2023-2024. Each of the four players largely play in the backcourt.
Pritchard averaged 5.6 points, 1.8 rebounds, 1.3 assists and 0.3 steals while shooting 41.2% from the field, 36.4% from 3-point range and 75.0% from the free-throw line in 13.4 minutes per game this season. Each marked a career-low for the third-year guard.
Which teams could show interest in Payton Pritchard if he is traded?
While Payton Pritchard is a bit undersized, he has shown that he can compete on both ends of the floor. Furthermore, at the age of 25, he can be inserted into the rotation for both win-now and rebuilding teams.
The team that possibly makes the most sense is the Utah Jazz. Pritchard was drafted by Jazz CEO of basketball operations Danny Ainge, while he was the Boston Celtics president of basketball operations.
Furthermore, there is a path to an uptick in playing time on the Jazz roster as they don't have much depth at point guard.
The Orlando Magic could also get involved as they were previously linked to Pritchard and are not sold on their point guard options. The Indiana Pacers and Cleveland Cavaliers have also been linked to Pritchard.
While both teams have their starting point guard of the future, Pritchard could provide depth at the position.
Finally, the Portland Trail Blazers may be a team to watch. Pritchard is from the Portland area and the Blazers could have plenty of roster turnover this year.
Whether they keep superstar point guard Damian Lillard or not, the addition of Pritchard would give the Trail Blazers something which they sorely lacked last season: depth behind their star.