After trading away Marcus Smart, the Boston Celtics are expected to elevate Payton Pritchard‘s role in the rotation, allowing him to consume some additional minutes at the point guard position and have a consistent role. Pritchard found himself on the outskirts of Joe Mazzulla‘s gameplan last year, as guard minutes became tight due to the strong three-man rotation of Smart, Derrick White, and Malcolm Brogdon.
With a larger role likely, Pritchard will need to prove the Celtics are right for trusting him rather than acquiring a veteran guard to fill his spot. Pritchard will be entering his fourth NBA season and has proven himself as a floor-spacing guard who can play on and off-ball on the offensive end. The Oregon product is also a sneaky-good offensive rebounder and will guard his yard on the defensive side of the floor.
Nevertheless, the 6-foot-1 guard needs to show improvements to his overall game. Here are three things Pritchard could work on during the upcoming season.