Boston Celtics' Payton Pritchard Wins NBA's Sixth Man Award Over Malik Beasley, Ty Jerome

The lead guard for Boston's second unit is also No. 3 in assists (279) and No. 5 in steals (70). While playing 80 of the 82 regular season games, Pritchard has been an all-around talent for coach Joe Mazzulla.

"The key to him is that he finds ways to impact games... One of the best three-level scorers that I've seen, especially for his size and is just a high-level competitor."Boston coach Joe Mazzulla on Pritchard

Pritchard is only the third Celtic ever to score 1,000+ points off the bench. Boston forward/center Kevin McHale did it three times and guard Ricky Davis did it once. Given the history of the 18-time world champion Celtics franchise (most in the NBA), that stat sounds even more impressive.

Without the former Oregon Duck, No. 2 seeded Boston would not be in the prime position that they are to repeat as NBA champions. In Boston's Game 1 win in the NBA Playoff's first round series against the No. 7 Orlando Magic, the West Linn native dropped 19 points on 6-for-8 field goals, 4-for-6 three-pointers, and a perfect 3-for-3 from the free throw line. Pritchard threw three dimes off the bench as well, proving further that he's much more than just an individual scorer.

“Payton’s a gamer, as everybody here sees. Any opportunity that he has to put the ball in the basket, he does it. But what makes him special is what he does on the defensive end. Picking up anybody full court, just being a dawg, hounding whoever’s in front of him.”Boston guard Jrue Holiday on Pritchard

Besides the all-star duo of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, Pritchard has been the most impactful player on Boston's roster since getting picked with the No. 26 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft. In his fifth professional campaign, he's averaging 14.3 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.5 assists to go along with just 1.0 turnovers per game.

The 2020 Pac-12 Conference Player of the Year has always been smart with his shot selection, shooting at an efficient clip of 47.2 field goal percentage/40.7 three-point percentage/84.5 free throw percentage in a career year with the Celtics.

Game 2 of the Boston-Orlando series will tip-off on Wednesday, April 23, at 4 p.m. PT at the TD Garden. TNT will have the television coverage.