Payton Pritchard is used to putting on a show over the summer. Remember when the newlywed dropped 80 points in a Pro-Am game while he was simultaneously hearing up the Vegas Strip in Summer League? Well, Fast PP is back in Sin City showing his stuff.
A pair of Pistons might have been the key players on the USA Select Team to take two scrimmages off Team USA in this weekend’s tune-up before heading off into international play, but Pritchard was able to make the highlight reel, too.
Cut to the 0:32 mark to watch #32 break Jalen Brunson off the dribble with a nifty lefty layup:
It’s not Fast PP’s first time repping the red, white, and blue. Back in 2017, he won a bronze medal for Team USA in the FIBA U19 3-on-3 World Cup.
It might have been his familiarity with the program that helped earned him a slot with the Select Team. It’s hard to imagine that last season with the Celtics helped. After being a key cog in their Finals run in 2022, Pritchard was the odd man out of a crowded Boston back court with the acquisition of Malcolm Brogdon.
Now, entering a contact year after multiple public requests to be traded, he’ll get an opportunity to prove himself in 2023-2024 with Marcus Smart now in Memphis. He’ll first wrap up a practice stint with Team USA before they head to the Philippines for the FIBA World Cup. And while this may appear to be a make it or break it year for Pritchard, it’s obvious that he has his supporters in both the national program and the Celtics organization.
