The Boston Celtics were playing a run of meaningless games after winning the NBA’s best record when we last checked in on them.

A supporting actor had a fantastic chance to take the lead while the headliners were sleeping. Payton Pritchard enters the picture at this point.

Let’s take a moment to applaud the Celtics for a regular season performance that will go down in history before we give Pritchard our due.

After defeating the Washington Wizards 132-122 on Sunday, they finished the 2023–24 season with 64–18, the fourth-best record in team history.

Radio play-by-play commentator Sean Grande couldn’t fit all of their accomplishments in a post on the website formerly known as Twitter because their list was so long. To be thorough, he had to link to an additional paper instead.

Although the starters were using these final games as a victory lap, Pritchard had the opportunity to make an impression on head coach Joe Mazzulla.

He scored a career-high 31 points against the Charlotte Hornets on Friday. The next game, against Washington, he went even higher, scoring 38 points and falling just shy of a triple-double by a few rebounds.

Rewind to the previous year, when there were rumors that Pritchard was seeking a change of pace after seeing his playing time decline.

Rather, the Celtics persuaded him to agree to a $30 million, four-year contract, presumably highlighting the fact that he wouldn’t likely find a better chance to compete for a title.

Pritchard proved to be one of the Celtics’ most important off-the-bench weapons, rewarding their faith. Pritchard, by himself among his teammates, averaged a career-high 22.3 minutes per game while participating in all 82 games this season.