Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard made a massive impact coming off the bench this season—and now he has the hardware to show for it. Pritchard was named the NBA’s Sixth Man of the Year, becoming the first Celtic to win the award since Malcolm Brogdon in 2023 and the fifth in franchise history.
Pritchard stood out as the only NBA player to score over 1,000 points in games where he wasn’t a starter. He also set a league record for most three-pointers made by a bench player. His consistency and spark off the bench helped propel the Celtics to one of the best records in the league.
He beat out Detroit’s Malik Beasley and Cleveland’s Ty Jerome for the honor, receiving 82 of the 100 first-place votes from a global panel of media members who cover the NBA. Beasley came in second, followed by Jerome and his Cleveland teammate De’Andre Hunter.
“This is definitely an honor,” Pritchard said during the TNT broadcast revealing the award.
The trophy itself holds special meaning for Celtics fans—it’s named after John Havlicek, a legendary sixth man and franchise icon.
Celtics President Brad Stevens praised Pritchard, saying, “Payton is a baller — and his teammates know what they are getting every single day in terms of effort, care, and commitment. For him to be honored with the award named after the great John Havlicek is a credit to all that he brings to the table for our team.”
Pritchard led all NBA reserves in scoring with 1,079 points in games he didn’t start. He also knocked down 246 threes in those games, and added a league-leading +428 in plus-minus among nonstarters. His 257 assists ranked third among bench players, behind only Indiana’s T.J. McConnell and Portland’s Scoot Henderson.
He played a key role supporting Boston’s All-Star duo of Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown. Learning to complement stars, rather than lead as he did in college, has been a transition. “It’s definitely a feel,” Pritchard explained. “I feel like I’m still getting better at it, but it’s just reading the game, knowing when maybe the defense is keying in on J.T. and J.B., and they’re kind of leaving gaps open. Then you’ve got to take advantage of those opportunities.”
A fan favorite for his relentless energy and fearless deep shooting, Pritchard had one of the most remarkable games of the season on March 5, recording 43 points, 10 rebounds, and 10 made threes—all off the bench. While that stat line doesn’t officially count as a triple-double, it was one of the wildest performances of the year.
Boston finished the regular season 61-21, and when Pritchard played well, they were even more dominant. The team was 17-6 when he scored at least 20 points off the bench and 36-12 when he reached at least 10.
Celtics guard Jrue Holiday summed it up: “Payton’s also a gamer, as everybody here sees. Any opportunity he can to put that ball in the basket, he does it. But what makes him special is what he does on the defensive end — picking up anybody full court, just being a dog, hounding whoever’s in front of him.”
Minnesota’s Naz Reid, last year’s winner, finished fifth this season, with teammate Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Denver’s Russell Westbrook, and OKC’s Alex Caruso rounding out the top eight.
This marks the first of this season’s individual NBA awards to be announced. The league will continue revealing winners throughout the week, including Clutch Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year.
