Payton Pritchard, Celtics reportedly agree to two-year contract extension

Zack Cox, Boston Herald on Oct 13, 2026

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BOSTON — Celtics guard Payton Pritchard agreed to terms Tuesday on a new contract extension, his representatives told ESPN’s Shams Charania.

The extension is a two-year deal worth $44.2 million that kicks in next season. It runs through the 2028-29 campaign and also includes a mutual option for 2029-30.

The mutual option would trigger if either the team or the player opts in.

Pritchard, the 2025 NBA Sixth Man of the Year, had two years remaining on his current four-year, $30 million pact, which is viewed as one of the league’s team-friendliest contracts. His $7.8 million salary this season ranks sixth on the Celtics’ payroll behind Jayson Tatum, Paul George, Derrick White, Mitchell Robinson and Sam Hauser.

Last season, Pritchard appeared in 79 games with 50 starts and averaged career highs in points (17.2 per game), rebounds (3.9) and assists (5.2). Despite being the smallest player on Boston’s roster, he was one of the NBA’s most efficient isolation scorers and one of the Celtics’ primary offensive options, even after head coach Joe Mazzulla shifted him back to the bench following sixth man Anfernee Simons’ February trade to Chicago.

It’s not yet clear how Mazzulla plans to utilize Pritchard this season — he came off the bench Saturday in his preseason debut and scored 25 points in a blowout win over the Philadelphia 76ers — but he could take on even more offensive responsibilities as Boston looks to replace the departed Jaylen Brown’s production.

Drafted 26th overall in 2020, the 28-year-old Pritchard is the Celtics’ second-longest-tenured player, behind only Tatum. He has said he hopes to take on a more vocal leadership role this season as a seventh-year pro, while also learning from 20-year veteran Mike Conley, who signed this offseason to back up White and Pritchard.

“Payton’s a menace, man,” Conley said earlier this month. “He’s an absolute crazy person when it comes to trying to improve his game. I’ve been impressed with just the awareness to ask questions. … Just really showing that humility, showing that he’s willing to grow and be a better player.

“But, I mean, he’s got everything in his game, all the tools — his ball-handling, his ability to score at his size, his strength, his balance. He’s going to have a good year.”