Celtics mailbag: Payton Pritchard's opportunity, Brad Stevens' trade options and more
Summer weather has arrived in Boston. And that means Brad Stevens and the Celtics front office are on the verge of a franchise-altering offseason.
It's a good time to answer some questions from the readers. Here's part 2 of our Celtics mailbag. Part 1 can be found here.
Questions have been lightly edited for style, grammar and clarity.
Are the Celtics planning on giving Payton Pritchard the opportunity to establish himself as a primary offensive creator next season? All he's done since coming into the league is improve, and the Tatum injury would seem to provide him, more than anyone else on the roster, with an unexpected chance to level up into a much more prominent role. — Peter P.
Pritchard could stand to gain the most touches and shot attempts during Tatum's absence. Considering the Celtics will also likely trade at least one starter, Pritchard should be set to take on the biggest role of his career. He should flourish with that opportunity.
Throughout recent years, one of Pritchard's strengths has been an ability to step up when the Celtics are shorthanded. Over 10 games without Tatum last season, the guard averaged 19.0 points, 5.3 assists and 5.0 rebounds. And the Celtics went 8-2 in those games.
Advertisement
How much shooting accuracy will Pritchard sacrifice if he does become more of a go-to guy and a focal point for opposing game plans? One of the most impressive parts about his Sixth Man of the Year season was that he increased his efficiency even while taking more difficult shots. Among all players to attempt at least seven 3-pointers per game, only Zach LaVine finished with a higher true shooting percentage than Pritchard. On the diet of shots Pritchard took, only a premier shooter could have finished the season at 40.7 percent from downtown like he did.
Can Pritchard push the boundaries of his game even further?
'We will put a good team together, a lot of competitors and people who will go out there and lay it on the line every night,' he said of next season. 'And I believe people will elevate their games and have bigger roles, especially with JT being out, until he comes back, and they should take full advantage of it and be ready for those opportunities. We will compete.'
From what you've heard, what are the percentages that each of Kristaps Porziņģis/Jrue Holiday/Jaylen Brown/Derrick White are traded? — Joshua E.
At this stage, I'm not sure even the Celtics front office could provide percentages on that. As far as I'm aware, none of those four players will be untouchable, but the price tag for Jaylen Brown and Derrick White will be extremely high.
Jrue Holiday, who will turn 35 next week, might be the most likely to go because of how old he will be when Tatum returns to full strength. If other teams value Holiday now (and I suspect they will) it would make sense for the Celtics to move on, as much as they appreciate everything he brings to the team on and off the court.
The futures of the other three starters likely all depend on the offers the Celtics receive as they explore avenues to shed salary this offseason. Is a team willing to blow away Brad Stevens with a huge offer for Brown or White? How much value does Porziņģis still have after yet another season marred by an inability to stay on the court? He will be on an expiring contract next season.
There's going to be a whole lot for the Celtics front office to weigh over the coming weeks and months.
How intact will the core four to seven players be in 2025-26 with JT out almost all year? Will this be a total rebuild, floor to ceiling? — Steve H.
The Celtics could go several ways. If they want to get out of the luxury tax entirely, and not just below the second apron, they would need to shed about $40 million in salary. Such a path would likely require more of a full rebuild, but they don't necessarily need to take that path.
Why, Jay? Why?? — Max S.
But, for Boston fans, seriously. How did everything shift so suddenly for the Celtics? One moment they were one of the favorites to win a title, which would have given them the organization's first back-to-back championships since the Bill Russell days. The next moment, they were the authors of consecutive collapses against the Knicks and Tatum's loved ones were crying in the Celtics locker room because he had ruptured his Achilles. And now, poor Steve H. is pondering the possibility of a full rebuild.
Advertisement
Losing a second-round series to that New York team would have been awful anyway; the Tatum injury turned it into a catastrophe like the tsunami that wiped out much of Earth's population in the television show 'Paradise.' Unfortunately for Brad Stevens, I don't think anyone has built an underground city where he could move to hide from the daunting decisions ahead.
What kind of quality big can the Celtics acquire if they move on from either Holiday or Porziņģis. Can they get a starter, a rim-protecting, screen-setting dunker that is a step up (from Neemias Queta)? I don't mind getting Al Horford back, but only as a rotation player with more limited minutes. — Jeff S.
The Celtics' frontcourt is nothing but a question mark right now. Porziņģis could get traded. Luke Kornet and Al Horford are free agents. At his exit interview, Horford declined to say with any certainty whether he will even play basketball next season. I assume somebody will start at center for Joe Mazzulla's team next season, but your guess on who that will be is as good as mine.
Tatum's injury could change Horford's decision on his future. The big man turned 39 earlier this week and the Celtics no longer appear ready to contend next season. This deep into his career, would he want to go chasing another ring elsewhere? If he does, he would be a good fit for several contending teams, including the Nuggets and Pacers. But Horford has really liked it in Boston and has five children to think about. The last time he left the Celtics as a free agent, he signed in Philadelphia, where he was utilized so poorly that people thought he was washed up. Would he risk ending his career in another situation that looks good on paper, but might not work out?
The Celtics' luxury tax situation (not great!) will also limit their frontcourt options, including potentially their ability to re-sign their own free agents. What I'm trying to say is that they should sign Vitor Faverani again and see what happens. For real, maybe they should call the Mavericks and see if they can pry away Daniel Gafford in a Jrue Holiday trade, though it would be fascinating to see how frustrated Mazzulla would get if he needed to play Queta 25 minutes per game. Mazzulla's sideline reactions to Queta's mistakes often provide great entertainment.
Here's the headline question I think you could answer in a fun way, because while the new owner and front office could stand pat and run up bills, they also could pull a swashbuckling Auerbach move or two: 'The Celtics are at a crossroads: What would Red do?' — Tad W.
He would have found a loophole to draft Cooper Flagg last year before his one and only season at Duke. Boom.
Advertisement
Jaylen Brown's name keeps coming up in trade rumors both by national media and by fans who think he's a turnover machine, which isn't true — a simple check of stats would tell them that, but no one uses facts in debates these days. While yes, they could get a lot in return for Brown which could reset the roster and get them out of luxury tax hell, do you think trading a young superstar who is also a pillar of the community and has great plans for the future of the area would destroy the image of the Boston Celtics and send a horrible message to other free agents? — Adam B.
Trading Brown would be a bold move. It could go extremely poorly. Generally, teams try to keep All-Stars who improve every year, serve as locker room leaders and own an NBA Finals MVP award. Even if a Brown move would fix Boston's apron dilemma, there would be no promise the Celtics would ever find Tatum such a capable running mate again.
That said, such player movement will become the new norm. The collective bargaining agreement includes severe enough penalties that teams will only have short windows before they need to break up a contending core. So I don't think such a trade would hurt Boston's chances of landing any free agents in the future. It would likely be more of a blow to the team's image among fans, many of whom love Brown and would hate to see him go. Would a new owner in Bill Chisholm have the stomach to oversee a teardown right away and potentially tick off his entire fan base during his first offseason?
Chisholm could just listen to the optimistic Chris W. instead.
So, I figured it out. Even without Tatum, the Celtics will win it all next year, and it'll be because Jaylen Brown leveled up. Hear me out: JB is best used as a play finisher. With Horford, KP, and Kornet all potentially gone, by necessity, the C's will need to play small, putting Brown at the 4. With 2-3 other ball handlers around him at all times, he'll no longer need to initiate. He'll also be matched up against 4s, mitigating the problems he has dribbling through traffic. With small-ball thrust upon them, the C's will embrace a new level of Mazzulla Ball, hoisting an absurd amount of 3s and powering the league's highest-scoring offense. It's a foolproof plan, right? Guys? — Chris W.
I don't see any weaknesses in that plan.
(Photo of Payton Pritchard: Al Bello / Getty Images)
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
USA Today
30 minutes ago
- USA Today
What are draft experts saying about Sixers prospect VJ Edgecombe?
What are draft experts saying about Sixers prospect VJ Edgecombe? When it comes to the No. 3 pick in the 2025 NBA draft, the Philadelphia 76ers will have plenty of options. They can turn to the likes of Rutgers star Ace Bailey--or his teammate Dylan Harper if the San Antonio Spurs have different plans at No. 2--Duke's Kon Knueppel, or Baylor's VJ Edgecombe. Bailey has been the popular option for the Sixers in most mock drafts, but the other names mentioned--outside of Harper--have been options as well. The Sixers will be looking to add a talented young piece to a roster in need of youth, and while Bailey has been a popular choice, one has reason to believe that Edgecombe could be a better player long term. Here's what the draft experts at The Ringer have to say about Edgecombe: The smooth, frictionless explosion off one or two feet. The sheer elevation. The paraglider hang time. Edgecombe's run-jump ability is a sight to behold—there may be only a handful of players in the NBA who can match his blend of dynamic athleticism. He has absolute trust in his physical gifts, which grants him a certain level of on-court freedom not afforded to most players. Under those auspices, Edgecombe has honed an anticipatory sixth sense most commonly seen in shutdown cornerbacks. He has the skills, motor, and reaction speed to become one of the best shot-blocking guards in the NBA, to go along with his passing-lane ball hawking. And he has more of a proof of concept than most NCAA players his age, having shown off these abilities at some of the highest levels of international competition. Edgecombe was, at worst, the third-best player on the Bahamian national basketball team in the 2024 FIBA Olympic Qualifying Tournament, on a roster that also featured Deandre Ayton, Buddy Hield, and Eric Gordon. Edgecombe averaged a superb 2.1 steals per game in 2024-25 for the Bears and one has to wonder how that will translate to the league. He has the potential to be an absolute terror on the defensive end of the floor and one has to believe he is going to be able to be a candidate for the All-Defensive Team every year. He also has an ability to knock down an open 3 so that will be a big help.
Yahoo
32 minutes ago
- Yahoo
LeBron Shuts Down The 'No Bag' Talk: "I'm Sitting Here With 50 Billion Points"
LeBron Shuts Down The 'No Bag' Talk: "I'm Sitting Here With 50 Billion Points" originally appeared on Fadeaway World. LeBron James is done listening to people claim he has 'no bag.' On the latest episode of Mind The Game, the all-time NBA scoring king finally addressed the long-running internet narrative questioning his creativity and dribble package. In true LeBron fashion, he didn't raise his voice, he raised the bar. Advertisement "When I was growing up, it wasn't talked about it. The least amount of dribbles to get where you need to get to was what I grew up on." "Michael Jordan wasn't out there dribbling 1,000 times, you know, to get to the spot. He'd get to a spot and raise. Isiah Thomas, as great of a handle that Isiah Thomas had, Isiah would get to a spot and raise." "All these guys that I grew up on, Grant Hill, get to a spot, I'm bigger than you. Big Dog Robinson, I'm bigger than you. Allen Houston, all these great players, that I grew up watching and admiring." "Penny Hardaway, they could dribble the basketball, but there's no... Tracy McGrady, even as great as Tracy's handle was, it was, I'm bigger than you, I'm gonna get to the spot and the least amount of dribbles." Advertisement "Kevin Garnett... Just good footwork, get over the top. If I'm bigger than you and I get you on my shoulder, I get you on my hip, I'm gonna use my size." "I see it all the time. It's like, you know, I'll be on social media, like, LeBron has no bag. LeBron has no bag and I'm sitting over here with 50 billion points." That's not hyperbole. LeBron James has amassed 52,243 career points, a mind-boggling number that includes 42,184 in the regular season and 8,289 in the playoffs. That's over 50,000 points in the NBA alone. Add in his points for Team USA, All-Star Games, the In-Season Tournament, and various exhibition and international games, and the total vaults well beyond the 52K mark. To put it simply, if LeBron has no bag, then basketball doesn't need one. Advertisement What triggered LeBron's subtle roast of the internet critics was a deeper discussion about how offensive basketball was taught and understood in his generation. He pointed out that players he admired growing up like Michael Jordan, Penny Hardaway, Grant Hill, and Tracy McGrady, all emphasized efficiency over flash. He mentioned legends like Allen Houston and 'Big Dog' Glenn Robinson, who dominated their matchups by using size, footwork, and precision, not a flurry of crossovers or highlight-reel ankle breakers. Even someone like Isiah Thomas, known for his handle, played within a framework that emphasized getting to a spot with purpose. In that context, LeBron sees himself not as lacking a bag, but simply operating from a different philosophy. Advertisement The comments are a timely reminder that "bag" talk — especially the internet's obsession with flashy dribbling and aesthetic shot creation — often ignores the actual results. LeBron didn't need to dance with the ball. He bulldozed, he glided, he orchestrated, and he dominated. From post fades to downhill drives, from bullet passes to chase-down blocks, LeBron's game is built on control, versatility, and overwhelming impact. And while social media might be fixated on who has the deepest handle or slickest combo, LeBron is focused on the scoreboard and history. Whether or not someone wants to call it a 'bag,' LeBron's point is simple: the man with over 50,000 points, four championships, and a two-decade run of dominance doesn't need to prove his artistry. He is the canvas. Related: Dominique Wilkins Says LeBron James Is A Sidekick For The Lakers After Luka Doncic Trade This story was originally reported by Fadeaway World on Jun 8, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
32 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Luka Doncic On Playing With LeBron James: "He Shows Up Like 10 Hours Before The Game"
Luka Doncic On Playing With LeBron James: "He Shows Up Like 10 Hours Before The Game" originally appeared on Fadeaway World. Luka Doncic hasn't been shy about expressing his awe at teaming up with LeBron James, and for good reason. The generational Dallas Mavericks talent, who was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers in a blockbuster move last offseason, is now sharing the floor with one of the most legendary figures in NBA history. And for Doncic, even after years of dominating the league himself, the experience has been eye-opening. Advertisement In a recent interview with on Mind The Game, Doncic reflected on what it has meant to play alongside LeBron. "I mean, it's great. You see, I've never played with a guy like this. And, you know, just being traded to here, to L.A., I mean, it was different. But just to play with guys like him, like, it's unbelievable." "Like, I could learn so many stuff, you know. First of all, off the court, you know, all the things he does just to be ready for the game. And obviously on the court, everybody knows what kind of player he is." That readiness, according to Luka, is part of what sets LeBron apart. When asked by Nash for a specific example, Doncic laughed and said: Advertisement "Well, first of all, he shows up like 10 hours before the game. So that was really the main, like, I was, what? I came to the arena. He was already done working out. I was like, what?" While the duo's chemistry is still developing, Doncic sees it trending upward. 'I think it's a work in progress,' he said: "I think I still think it's a work in progress. When we two are out there, and AR, you know, he's been playing unbelievable. And I think it's just still a work in progress. You know, I think we're getting better and better every day." Despite flashes of brilliance, the Lakers' 2024-25 season ended in disappointment. Advertisement The team's glaring roster flaw, the absence of a true center, proved fatal in the playoffs, especially against the physicality of the Minnesota Timberwolves. Anthony Davis had left in the blockbuster trade and the Lakers never found a proper replacement. The Lakers were bounced in five games, leaving both Luka and LeBron frustrated. This offseason, Lakers GM Rob Pelinka has acknowledged that failure and made it clear that getting a center is priority number one. He also emphasized the importance of meeting LeBron James' expectations in what could be his final season. LeBron is expected to opt into his player option for his 23rd NBA season, and with Doncic now locked in as the franchise's future, the Lakers are in win-now and win-later mode. Advertisement Austin Reaves remains a key part of that vision. While rumors swirl about his trade availability, the Lakers have made it clear they won't move him unless it's for an All-Star talent. His agent has also come out publicly denying that Reaves is getting traded, reinforcing that he's still part of L.A.'s long-term core. Among the centers linked to the Lakers this summer are Daniel Gafford, Nic Claxton, and Brook Lopez. The team also holds valuable trade assets, including Dalton Knecht and a future first-round pick. With those chips in play, expect the Lakers to be aggressive in finding a center who can anchor the defense and complement both Luka Doncic's pick-and-roll mastery and LeBron James' all-around brilliance. Related: Luka Doncic Reveals How He Fell In Love With Basketball This story was originally reported by Fadeaway World on Jun 1, 2025, where it first appeared.
