Payton Pritchard had the best season of his career during the 2025-26 regular season, recording career-highs in points (17.0), assists (5.2) and rebounds (3.9) while being thrust into the starting lineup for much of the year. The former Oregon Ducks standout thrived off the bench the season prior, winning the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year award, but a new year brought new responsibilities that Pritchard fully stepped into and embraced.
Long considered one of the most underpaid players considering his production, Pritchard and his representatives had to wait until October 1 to begin contract negotiations with the Boston Celtics, the team that drafted him 26th in 2020 and has been his home for all six years of his career.
Two weeks after the contract
negotiation window began, Pritchard and the Celtics have agreed to a two-year, $44.2 million contract extension, with an additional mutual option for the 2029-30 season, per ESPN's Shams Charania.
Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard has agreed to a two-year, $44.2 million contract extension, plus a mutual option in the 2029-30 season, CAA Co-Head of Basketball Austin Brown and agent Max Saidman tell ESPN. pic.twitter.com/EnAOhZIj5E
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) October 13, 2026
Pritchard and the Celtics had originally agreed to a four-year, $30 million contract extension in 2023, giving the former Duck an annual average salary of $7.5 million. At that time, Pritchard was coming off a season in which he averaged just 13.4 minutes and 5.6 points per game. He was a middling bench player, at best.
Fast forward three years later and Pritchard has a Sixth Man of the Year honor to his name and proved that he can step into the starting lineup and produce. He's now got a brand new contract extension to boot, keeping him in Boston for the foreseeable future.
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This article originally appeared on Ducks Wire: Payton Pritchard gets significant raise, signs contract extension
