It’s a small sample size of just 8 games, but rookie Payton Pritchard has been fun to watch.

I’ll admit, when he was first drafted, I was not the biggest fan of the pick. Heading into the draft, I was hoping Danny Ainge would select a deadeye shooter & a big man who could crack the rotation. Ainge got his shooter in Aaron Nesmith, but with the 26th pick, he selected PG Payton Pritchard out of Oregon. It was a surprising pick, since the I felt the Celtics had more than enough depth at point guard (Kemba, Smart, Edwards, & Waters).

Looking back, I can’t stop loving the pick.

It was clear that Kemba’s knee was going to take some time to recover, so Ainge felt the need to find a guard to fill in playmaking duties. The Celtics did also lose Brad Wanamaker in free agency, so the pick made much more sense after the draft.

Since the start of this season, Pritchard has averaged 8.6 points, 2.0 rebounds, 3.1 assists, while shooting 54% from the field and 42% from 3. Fresh after arguably his best game of the season vs Toronto (23 points, 8 assists), he joined some elite company based on his performance.

Crazy right?

Pritchard has filled in the shoes of Kemba’s absence pretty well. He hasn’t given you 20-25 a night that Kemba does, but his great playmaking off the bench has served Boston wonders. Providing the C’s with a spark was something that was definitely needed based on how the bench looked last year.

Like I said, it’s only been 8 games, but Pritchard looks like a huge draft steal from Danny Ainge. Now imagine how good Boston will be once Kemba returns. Not only will their bench be much improved, but even with Kemba’s return, I can only see Pritchard improve even more.