All things considered, Payton Pritchard is having a pretty good start to his summer. After losing his spot in the Boston Celtics rotation following the arrival of Malcolm Brogdon, Pritchard has a chance to regain some minutes next season, courtesy of the Marcus Smart trade to acquire Kristaps Porzingis.
Pritchard wanting a trade was never about not being happy with the Celtics. The young guard’s motivations were strictly basketball-based; he’s a hooper, and hoopers want to hoop. Pritchard has another reason to be celebrating, though, and it’s not because yesterday was the 4th of July. Well, maybe he celebrated that too, but that’s neither here nor there.
On July 3, Pritchard took to Instagram to reveal his engagement to girlfriend Emma MacDonald.
The couple have been dating for six months and the proposal appears to have taken place in Cape Cod. Pritchard and MacDonald can be seen in their Instagram photos looking extremely happy together and will now likely begin wedding planning.
Pritchard is going to have his work cut out both on and off the court.
With a full offseason to prepare, Pritchard will likely be working on new aspects of his game, ones that translate to the style of basketball Joe Mazzulla and his coaching staff are looking to play next season. Under Ime Udoka, Pritchard improved his screening and cutting, making him a viable option at either guard position, despite his perceived lack of size.
Entering the league as a sharpshooter, Pritchard already possesses Mazzulla’s most desired skill, and with a more consistent role looking increasingly likely, the Oregon native should have no problem finding consistency with his perimeter shot again.
Everything appears to be coming up roses for Pritchard right now; all we can do is hope his good fortune translates to the court and rubs off on his teammates as they try to put their Eastern Conference Finals failure behind them heading into the new season.
