Brad Stevens has been on a tear with the extensions and contracts he's handed out this season. It's already exciting enough to know Jordan Walsh is sticking around with the Boston Celtics for the next four years, but that three-year extension is not only team-friendly, but it fits a pattern of deals he's handed out this summer.
Just take a look at the long-term deals Stevens has signed (NOT TRADED) his guys to.
Jordan Walsh: three years, $15 million
Neemias Queta: four years, $52 million
Ron Harper Jr.: four years, $12 million
Mitchell Robinson: three years, $47 million
He signed three players who proved to be quite valuable to their rotation last year to $80 million give or take for the next four years at minimum, then added one of the premier free agents and NBA champions for much less than what he was worth after what he did for New York.
It may not stop there, as Payton Pritchard is next. Pritchard, who could be in line for another breakout season in a bigger role, is eligible for another extension worth $67 million over three years.
Pritchard's role in Boston is going to be the biggest it's ever been since the Celtics took him. Every time they have asked more of him, he has delivered. Pending any surprises, he's not going back to the bench but could very well be Jayson Tatum's second-in-command with Jaylen Brown gone.
Not only that, but he's on one of the NBA's best contracts, as he's entering the third year of a four-year, $24 million contract.
They might not be as lucky as they were last time
Boston gave Pritchard his first extension to show confidence in him following his frustration from being benched in Year 3 in favor of Malcolm Brogdon. They got lucky that he hadn't shown as much as he since then.
As awesome as it would be to see Pritchard play at an All-Star level under another team-friendly contract, it would also make sense for Pritchard himself to see things through first. He may pass on that extension not out of a lack of commitment to Boston, but because he believes he may prove himself to be worth more.
The aforementioned extensions Stevens has handed out this summer may serve as a reminder to Pritchard that the Celtics' President of Basketball Operations got him under similar terms back in 2023, and with Brown gone, he probably knows by now that he's important as he's ever been.
If Stevens can get this upcoming extension with Pritchard done too, it's further proof of how much of a master of his craft he is after some of his decisions this offseason have been, well, not so well-received.
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