Celtics Guard Payton Pritchard Addresses Future With Team; Could Trade be Imminent?

Will the Celtics make a move involving Pritchard?

Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

The Boston Celtics have some decisions to make.

The NBA Trade Deadline is set to pass Thursday, Feb. 9 at 3 p.m. ET and one of the biggest questions surrounding the Celtics is whether or not sharpshooting point guard Payton Pritchard will be with the club after the deadline passes.

Pritchard has seen an increased role as of late as the team has been without the services of starting point guard Marcus Smart, but it doesn't necessarily sound like he plans to be in Boston for the long run, according to a conversation he had with the Boston Globe's Adam Himmelsbach. 

“I mean, it’s not easy,” Pritchard said to Himmelsbach about his role. “It’s a lot of ups and downs. I think people know I want to play, especially while I’m young still. So that’s my biggest thing, being somewhere I can play, where they believe in me.

“I feel like if I can help affect winning, that’s the most important thing. But at the end of the day, I have no say in if I’m here or there. It’s out of my control.”

Pritchard has shown in his three seasons in Boston that he is one of, if not the team's best three-point shooter, but is playing a career-low 12.4 minutes per game this season. The young guard is behind Smart, Derrick White, and Malcolm Brogdon on the team's depth chart and that won't likely change anytime soon. 

If Pritchard were to be moved, it likely would make more sense after the season rather than ahead of the deadline. Smart, White, and Brogdon all have missed time at points this season and Pritchard has filled in well when needed. If the team were to deal him, it would take away some of their depth as they look to win a championship this season. 

Boston has had conversations about trades involving Pritchard -- one example being for former San Antonio Spurs big man Jakob Poeltl -- but nothing has come to fruition at this point.

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