Payton Pritchard once asked Celtics to trade him

Pritchard didn't -- or couldn't. When the February trade deadline approached, Pritchard asked to be traded. The front office made calls to try to honor the request, team sources said, but no call yielded enough interest to warrant a deal, and Pritchard remained a Celtic. "I had to sit behind a lot of people, a lot of good guards that honestly I've learned a lot from," Pritchard said. "But it was tough to sit there for those times."

Source: ESPN

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Still, Pritchard saw his minutes sink to 13.1 per game in his third season -- when Mazzulla took over for Udoka, who was suspended for violating team policies -- and he played in just 48 regular-season games after averaging 68 the two seasons before. It was agonizing. To fall further down the bench after all the work he'd put in was demoralizing. "He was losing his mind not getting minutes," a team source said. Pritchard called his father, Terry, often. "Just wait your time," Terry told his son. "I don't care if you're getting in for one minute -- just be the best player on the court for that one minute." -via ESPN / January 28, 2025

From his perch in a fifth-floor suite above midcourt, Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens looked on, and he, like everyone else in the arena -- if not the entire league -- knew what would happen next.. "He'll never not take a heave," Stevens told ESPN of Pritchard. "It's not about what his shooting percentages are. It's about winning. And I love that." -via ESPN / January 28, 2025

Gary Washburn: #Celtics respond from tough Saturday loss with 125-85 win at GSW. Tatum 22, Porzingis 18, Brown 17, Pritchard 14, Holiday 10; Curry 18, Moody 13. #Warriors FG: BOS 49-92, GSW 32-92. -via Twitter @GwashburnGlobe / January 20, 2025

This article originally appeared on Hoops Hype: Payton Pritchard once asked Celtics to trade him