The Boston Celtics are going to look completely different next season following the Jaylen Brown trade. Jayson Tatum is going to be the team's undisputed No. 1 option for the first time in his career, and while there are reasons to be excited about that (putting the ball in his hands more should only help the Celtics, given his elite decision-making and gravity), it's also important for the rest of the team to step up and take some pressure off of him, especially since he has only played 22 total games since his Achilles injury.
One player to keep an eye on is Payton Pritchard. He was excellent in a starting role for Boston last season (in 50 games as a starter, he averaged 16.9 points, 5.3 assists, and 4.3 rebounds on 45.6/34.8/86.7% shooting splits, according to StatMuse.com), and because of his strengths as a shot creator, it could make sense for him to assume a bigger role, have the ball in his hands a lot more to complement Tatum, and become a full-time starter.
But as it stands, it's not entirely clear if the Celtics are planning on making this move... largely because they might not be able to.
The Celtics don't have anyone to replace Payton Pritchard
If the Celtics opted to start Pritchard (who, in my opinion, deserves the nod), there are some obvious pros (this gives Tatum another shot creator in the lineup, and it can fully unlock Pritchard's potential and the proficiency of the system), but that might not be enough for Boston to make the move.
One of the main reasons the Celtics were comfortable starting Pritchard in Tatum's absence last season was that they had Anfernee Simons on the roster, who, in a way, acted as Pritchard's replacement. He was another ball-dominant guard who could score at all three levels and was a microwave.
Boston doesn't have Simons anymore, and it doesn't really have anybody else who can play that role besides Pritchard.
Boston's bench scoring would take major hit by starting Payton Pritchard
The Celtics' lack of bench scoring was a big problem last season, especially in the playoffs, and removing Pritchard from that unit is only going to make it worse. They don't have anyone else they could feel confident in as a go-to scorer off the bench.
Plus, assuming the Celtics start the Oregon native, their lineup would look something like this: Derrick White - Pritchard - Paul George - Jayson Tatum - Neemias Queta. That's a solid lineup on paper, but given how weak their bench would look (I don't know about you, but I wouldn't trust Sam Hauser, Hugo Gonzalez, or Baylor Scheierman to regularly score 15 points off the bench every night), it could ultimately cause more harm than good.
This would also force the Celtics to utilize Mike Conley more as a backup point guard on the court, and that's far from ideal. (The Conley signing can be great for Boston because of his locker-room presence and veteran leadership, but on the court, he doesn't provide much value anymore.)
Ultimately, Boston is probably better off keeping Pritchard as a backup for one more season (but allowing him to make spot starts in case of injuries and allowing him to close games) and figuring out how to make it work the next season. The 28-year-old isn't just good enough to start; it might end up being the best possible role for him since he will have more opportunities to have the ball in his hands.
As it stands, though, the Celtics might not be able to give him that chance. Hopefully for him and the team, they can figure out how to make it work sooner rather than later.
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