These Four Celtics Players Have Huge Opportunity Ahead Of Them

BRIGHTON, Mass. — The Boston Celtics polished their roster by welcoming in a plethora of new faces, including some household names, but the door is still open for several other roster members to capitalize.

Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla already has his go-to crew in Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown and Kristaps Porzingis, then Al Horford, Derrick White and Jrue Holiday who can easily start. From there, it’s up for grabs for the reserve unit members to make names for themselves.

The departure of Marcus Smart, Grant Williams, Robert Williams III and Malcolm Brogdon left various (and valuable) voids to be filled. Whether it’d be the defensive identity Boston hopes to re-establish, or the elite outside shooting that helped the C’s rack up blow-out victories, there are plenty of chances in place for nearly any roster member to take a leap forward.

With that being said, here are the four Celtics players with the biggest opportunity awaiting them on Opening Night come Oct. 25:

Payton Pritchard
Last season was anything but easy for Payton Pritchard.

The feisty undersized guard has made a living challenging the odds in front of him, working around a 6-foot-1 stature. But even that didn’t stop Pritchard during the early years of his career from helping fill a role as an outside shooting source off the bench.

That development, however, hit a detour when Boston had the luxury trio of Smart, White and Brogdon playing ahead of Pritchard, leaving the Oregon product rummaging for minutes throughout the season.

Now, with Brogdon and Smart gone, and not many guarantees coming off Boston’s bench, the chance for Pritchard to prove himself is once again open.

“I’m looking forward to the opportunity to be a part of this team and try to do something special,” Pritchard said during Monday’s Celtics media day. “… It’s a good opportunity for a lot of us to step up and show what we’re capable of and how we can impact winning. I’m looking forward to that.”

Pritchard is coming off a season in which he averaged a career-low in minutes (13.4), points (5.6) and games (48). And in an effort ahead of Pritchard’s redemption campaign, he spent much of the summer playing, whether that’d be in Pro-Am tournaments or representing Team USA in FIBA.

“As hard as it was, and the competitive nature in me, it was tough,” Pritchard explained. “But I definitely think I’ve matured a lot through last year. Not playing a lot, it’s something you do your whole life, like, all of us, we play all the time. … My game grew, but mentally I grew in all areas.”

Sam Hauser
Getting a chance to fill an outside sharpshooter role in place of former Celtics forward Danilo Gallinari, third-year veteran Sam Hauser fizzled out after having a red-hot touch.

Hauser shot 50% from the field and 46.2% from 3-point range while averaging 8.3 points in the month of November, showing promising potential. But those numbers dipped down and didn’t recover until Hauser averaged nine points in February, wrapping up an inconsistent campaign that came with inconsistent ineffective time off the bench in the playoffs.

Like Pritchard, the Celtics are fairly aware of what Hauser can offer, but with less depth, the 25-year-old can truly work to mesh into Boston’s 3-pointer-fueled offense.

“I think nothing is given in this business, you have to earn everything and that’s nothing new to me,” Hauser said. “That’s nothing new to me. That’s kind of been my whole basketball career. Just trying to earn and continue to grow as a player. I think with more guys coming in, I think it’s just a lot more motivation to get better and show what I can do for our team.”

Oshae Brissett
Playing for the Indiana Pacers last season, Oshae Brissett never got the experience of playing for a legitimate NBA Finals contender.

That all changed when Brissett inked a two-year deal with the Celtics in free agency, well aware that Boston brought him aboard to fill a selfless role off the bench.

“I felt a sense of excitement on their end and, to me, that’s very refreshing,” Brissett said. “Hearing a winning team excited that I’m available to be a potential Celtic, I just felt they were very authentic with what they were saying and, for me, that goes a long way. … They made it very clear: we don’t need star players, we have star players. We want guys like you who can come in and make a quick change or add what we feel like we’re missing.”

Brissett provides athleticism along with an ability to space the floor and knock down outside shots, all three of which can go a long way considering Boston’s offseason departures. That toughness factor alone, which Brissett displayed in several instances with the Pacers, could earn him a key role off the bench if brought to Boston.

Jordan Walsh
In college, Jordan Walsh’s most valuable asset fits in perfectly with one of Boston’s biggest needs: defense.

After the Celtics drafted Walsh 38th overall in the second round of the 2023 NBA Draft, the reviews came in raving about Walsh’s defensive intensity. Eric Musselman, Walsh’s head coach at Arkansas, even described the 19-year-old as a “violent defender.”

Walsh, at 6-foot-7, was a standout performer during Boston’s five-game Summer League run in Las Vegas. He averaged a team-leading 16 points on 42.2% shooting from the field along with 4.2 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.1 steals per contest.

“A big focus right now is getting stronger. So I can be able to guard bigger, stronger guys, obviously,” Walsh revealed. “But also just being able to shoot the ball and make open shots, especially wide open. Being able to open up the floor for guys like Tatum and Brown.”