5 Boston Celtics who definitely shouldn’t be back next season

Payton Pritchard

Danny Ainge’s last draft pick as the GM of the Boston Celtics, Payton Pritchard, is someone who sealed his own fate during the 2022-23 regular season when he voiced a desire for a bigger role — whether with the Cs or with another franchise. In the middle of a campaign in which the Celtics had a legitimate chance of a championship, Pritchard potentially made things awkward in the locker room.

Joe Mazzulla likely didn’t appreciate that, and it’s hard to imagine the front office feeling differently.

Pritchard is one of the team’s top trade chips, potentially holding value to a rebuilding franchise like the Houston Rockets or San Antonio Spurs who may be willing to part with an end-of-the-rotation wing or big man and/or a draft pick to add a high-upside, high-efficiency spot-up shooter who would fit next to Jabari Smith/Jalen Green/James Harden(?) or Victor Wembanyama.

It seems all but a certainty that Boston won’t be Pritchard’s employer in 2023-24, which is his final season before hitting restricted free agency. More than likely, Pritchard’s agent will push to find him a spot in which he can slide into rotation minutes immediately.