Throughout the regular season, just about everyone on the Boston Celtics roster had opportunities come their way. Some games it would be Baylor Scheierman, others it was Hugo Gonzalez, or Jordan Walsh. Luka Garza would go from stretches of DNP-CDs to legitimately changing the momentum of games with his hustle.
So much is made of tightening rotations come playoff time, but the identity of this Celtics team is partly defined by its tremendous depth. It would be shocking if their entire postseason run went without some semblance of an unsung hero.
It doesn’t mean any of those players is necessarily going to have to take on a role larger than they can handle for an extended period. But maybe it’ll happen for a game.
Maybe one of Scheierman, Gonzalez, Walsh, or Garza will have a performance that swings the outcome on a given night.
That’s what makes the playoffs special. There’s always the “(insert player here) game.”
“Everybody's got to be prepared,” Payton Pritchard said at Tuesday’s practice. “And the one thing I noticed about the playoffs is like, you know, each series, each game, like somebody can come in a bit big for us and win us a game. So everybody has to be ready for their moment, and to reach a championship, we need our full roster.”
Pritchard spent the majority of his career, prior to last season, in the same shoes as his less-experienced teammates. He averaged less than 20 minutes per game in each of his first four playoff runs, yet still managed to put together memorable performances.
Pritchard has become a reliable veteran leader
His Game 2 outing against the Brooklyn Nets in 2022 is the first that jumps to memory. Pritchard scored 10 fourth-quarter points to help Boston solidify a 17-point comeback over the Nets. He wasn’t afraid of the moment, took his opportunities in stride, and set a foundation for big moments down the line.
The reigning NBA Sixth Man of the Year knows he can be a voice for Boston’s stay ready crew. For them, his message is simple.
“Just stay with your work, keep it, keep your mental right,” Pritchard said. “It's another season really, like the playoffs is a whole nother season. It's another championship, another two months. So you know, every game, be ready. [If the opportunity] doesn't come that game be ready for the next one, and then you just never know when your moment's gonna hit.”
Scheierman’s, Gonzalez’s, Walsh’s, or Garza’s first big playoff moment could come at any time. They’ll just have to be ready.
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