How a bench player became the league's most efficient one-on-one scorer

Payton Pritchard holds the record for the most efficient one-on-one scoring in the NBA. Last season, his effective field goal percentage on isolation plays was 58.6%, surpassing Nikola Jokic, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and Luka Doncic. Despite playing off the bench for much of the year, Pritchard posted the league's highest points per isolation possession at the season's midpoint. By season's end, he ranked third in that metric behind Doncic and Gilgeous-Alexander.

The Celtics rely heavily on Pritchard as a sixth man, a role he embraced after Jrue Holiday left for Portland and Jayson Tatum suffered an Achilles injury. He started 50 games last season but often sat in favor of other options. Assistant coach Sam Cassell describes him as a "6-1 soaking wet" player who defies expectations of what an NBA star should look like. Pritchard's success stems from a rigorous offseason routine that prioritizes raw one-on-one repetition over team practice.

Every summer, Pritchard recruits Division II and III players, international guards, and local friends to train with him. He selects humid, un-air-conditioned high school gyms, often in Cape Cod or his hometown of West Linn, Oregon. In 2023, temperatures in his Oregon gym reached 120 degrees during a heat wave. Pritchard brings extra towels because the ball sweats in that heat. He pays his defenders for travel and food, but the work is intense. They play one-on-one for hours, with Pritchard taking 150 possessions per session, three times a week.

Pritchard uses these sessions to refine specific skills: creating space, reacting to chasers, and shooting from various spots on the floor. If his shooting percentage drops below 60% during a session, his defenders eat at Chipotle and send him the bill. This method allows him to test his game against relentless, feisty defense in a controlled environment. The Celtics' assistant GM Dave Lewin compares Pritchard's approach to Kyrie Irving's late-night one-on-one sessions in Cleveland.

The habit began in high school when Pritchard, a lanky teenager, trained with Steve Blake, a journeyman NBA player. Blake beat Pritchard repeatedly for an entire summer, prompting the young guard to vow to improve. Pritchard also bandaged his hands raw from dribbling weighted balls and performed plyometrics during lunch breaks to mimic Russell Westbrook's athletic development. This relentless focus on fundamentals and one-on-one mastery has defined his career since his late first-round draft selection.

The payoff appeared clearly in the 2026 playoffs against the Philadelphia 76ers. In Game 3, Pritchard hit a buzzer-beater step-back 26-footer to seal a 103-98 victory. Two days later in Game 4, he scored 32 points, a playoff career high, including a buzzer-beating three-pointer at the end of the first quarter. He outscored Boston's entire starting lineup in the first half, combining for 24 points. These performances confirmed that his isolated scoring efficiency translates to high-pressure moments.

As the Celtics aim to reclaim their top spot in the Eastern Conference, they will need Pritchard to maintain this level of play. The team lost Jaylen Brown to Philadelphia in the offseason, increasing the burden on their remaining guards. Pritchard continues his summer regimen, seeking to refine his game further through repetitive one-on-one work. His goal remains the same: to master the isolated possession and outlast any defender on the court.