‘Business decision’ signals likely departure of last Boston Celtics first-round pick

Payton Pritchard’s recent decision to replace his current representation with Creative Arts Agency signals the point guard will most likely move on from the Boston Celtics during the upcoming offseason.

Pritchard called it a ‘business decision.’ “At the end of the day, it’s a business decision,” he told MassLive’s Souichi Terada.

The Oregon product explained that CAA was, to him, the best agency for his goals — which are likely to include finding a bigger role, as he has openly stated he desires. “I think when you’re going into making choices on your future and your business, you want somebody that you believe is going to represent you in the best way and really help you,” Pritchard said. “I’m not dissing my previous agent or anything like that. At the end of the day, it’s a nerve-wracking time so you want to go with somebody that you really believe in.”

Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard coy on why he changed agents

Pritchard didn’t divulge much into why he left ENGAGE management to join the same agency that represents stars such as Devin Booker, Paul George, Jalen Brunson, Donovan Mitchell, Chris Paul, Julius Randle, and Karl-Anthony Towns, to name a few.

He just gave CAA props for being what he feels is his best option moving forward.

“I just thought I needed a change,” Pritchard said. “I found somebody that I thought was really good, and I thought it was the best decision for my future.”

The Boston Celtics not finding trade for Payton Pritchard could have caused agency switch

Logically, Pritchard asking for a trade, only to end up sticking on the same roster he indicated he wanted to move on from, seems to have been the breaking point for the 25-year-old with ENGAGE. In changing management, a deal seems all but certain.

Especially because CAA has a track record for getting players paid in the uniforms they want to play in.