Oregon Professional Athletes

Payton Pritchard is staying in Boston — and the Oregon product is poised to be more important to the Celtics than ever before.

The seven-year veteran agreed to a two-year, $44.2 million fully guaranteed contract extension ahead of the 2026-27 season, with a mutual option tacked on for the 2029-30 campaign. The deal, first reported by ESPN's Shams Charania, keeps the former Duck under contract through the end of the decade and represents the most significant financial commitment of Pritchard's career.

It's hard to argue Boston overpaid. Pritchard set career highs across the board last season — 17.0 points, 5.2 assists, and 3.9 rebounds per game — and did so while earning the Sixth Man of the Year Award and contributing to an NBA championship. With Jaylen Brown no longer in the picture, he's now expected to slide into a full-time starting role, making the $44.2 million figure look like a relative bargain by current market standards. CBS Sports called it exactly that.

Not everyone agreed with the structure. One anonymous NBA executive suggested Pritchard left money on the table — that he could have commanded a richer deal had he bet on himself and hit free agency. But insiders pushed back hard, pointing to the security, the mutual option, and the fit in Boston as clear upsides for Pritchard's side of the ledger. Sports Illustrated framed it as a genuine win-win: the Celtics lock in a proven contributor at a manageable rate; Pritchard gets security, continuity, and a starring role.

Coach Joe Mazzulla didn't mince words after the signing, sending what was described as a powerful public endorsement of his guard's value to the franchise. Pritchard himself took to social media with a message that reflected the weight of the moment — he's the second-longest tenured Celtic behind only Jayson Tatum, and he's spent his entire NBA career in green.

Tatum was among the NBA stars who reacted publicly to the extension, a signal of just how embedded Pritchard has become in Boston's locker room culture.

The early preseason returns are encouraging, too. In a 114-93 win over the Charlotte Hornets, Pritchard racked up 11 assists against zero turnovers off the bench — a performance that had analysts wondering if an expanded playmaking role could be the next evolution of his game. ESPN's Kendrick Perkins went further, predicting Pritchard will emerge as the Celtics' second-leading scorer this season.

Around the Rest of the Duck NBA Alumni

Oregon's other NBA representatives generated modest noise during the preseason week. Dillon Brooks, now with the Phoenix Suns, appeared in multiple storylines — he offered a public endorsement of teammate Khaman Maluach after the young big held his own against Victor Wembanyama, and he sat down with Michael Porter Jr. on the NBPA's PLYR2PLYR series to explain why he leans into his league-wide "villain" reputation (spoiler: off the court, he says, he's "super chill"). Brooks also drew attention after getting into a preseason dustup with Detroit's John Collins.

For Duck fans, though, this week belonged to Pritchard. The kid from West Linn, Oregon — who walked on at Oregon before becoming a star — just signed the biggest contract of his life, in the city that's embraced him longest. The breakout wasn't a fluke. Boston made sure of it.

Brooks Is Back — And He Didn't Wait Long

It took Dillon Brooks less than five minutes to remind the NBA why it loves to hate him.

In the Suns' preseason opener against the Detroit Pistons on Oct. 5, the former Oregon forward was already in the middle of a heated altercation — this one ending with Pistons newcomer John Collins grabbing Brooks by the throat. The play drew a lengthy review and resulted in two penalties, but if Brooks was rattled, he didn't show it. Sports Illustrated declared he was "back like he never left," and the footage made it hard to argue otherwise.

The fun didn't stop there. In Phoenix's next preseason matchup against the Chicago Bulls — a 124-117 Bulls win — Brooks was matched up against rookie Caleb Wilson, who scored a team-high 15 points. Bulls head coach Tiago Splitter later said the physical Brooks matchup taught Wilson a valuable early lesson about NBA physicality. Being a finishing school for young prospects is an unintentional but very on-brand role for the Duck villain.

Brooks also found time to take aim at the officials, calling out NBA refs for "trying to reinvent the wheel" with new points of emphasis around push-offs, arm extensions, and excessive force driving to the basket. For a player whose entire game lives in those gray areas, the new rulebook interpretations hit close to home — and Brooks made sure everyone knew it.

Three preseason storylines. One week. Zero chill.

Conley Opens a New Chapter in Boston

While Brooks was busy making enemies in Phoenix, Mike Conley was doing what he's always done best: making friends in Boston.

The veteran point guard, who spent the bulk of his career in Memphis and later Minnesota, sat down with Yahoo Sports this week to discuss what it means to finally land with the Celtics — a destination he said almost happened multiple times before. Conley opened up about his transition to Boston, his approach to being a great teammate, and one relationship in particular that's already paying dividends: his bond with fellow Duck Payton Pritchard.

Conley spoke warmly about Pritchard, and the connection makes natural sense — two Oregon guards now sharing a locker room on one of the NBA's premier franchises. Whether that on-court partnership gets real run early in the preseason remains to be seen. Pritchard was among eight Celtics players held out of Boston's preseason opener against the Cavaliers, per Yahoo Sports, alongside stars Jayson Tatum, Paul George, and Derrick White. His availability going forward will be one to monitor.

Chris Boucher, also on the Celtics roster, gives Boston three Ducks in camp — a remarkable concentration of Oregon talent on a defending-contender roster.

The Bigger Duck Picture

Between Brooks stirring chaos in the desert and Conley quietly building something meaningful in Boston, Oregon's NBA alumni week was as full of contrast as it was content. One Duck is making headlines by being impossible to like. The other is making them by being impossible not to.

Both are doing exactly what they've always done. Eugene would be proud — or at least entertained.

Oregon's NBA alumni are making preseason headlines for wildly different reasons — one is the toast of a championship contender, the other is navigating a criminal charge as training camp opens.

Payton Pritchard: Extension Eligible and Untouchable

The Eugene product is entering his seventh NBA season as arguably the most talked-about backup point guard in the league, and his Celtics teammates aren't shy about it. One Boston player called Pritchard "a menace" and "a crazy person" — meant as the highest of compliments — a testament to the relentless work ethic and competitiveness he brings to practice every day.

Off the floor, the business case for Pritchard is just as compelling. Now extension-eligible, the Celtics can lock him up for an additional three years at $67 million, according to Yahoo Sports. After Pritchard was a driving force in Boston's surprising run to the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference last season — alongside Jaylen Brown and Derrick White — the question isn't really whether the Celtics should pay him, but when.

Pritchard himself isn't interested in being defined by a narrow role. Speaking ahead of his seventh season, he told ClutchPoints he refuses to be "put in a box," a fitting declaration from a player who has consistently outperformed expectations since leaving Eugene. He's also forming a notable bond at camp with veteran Mike Conley, more than a decade his senior, who has taken the Duck under his wing as training camp begins.

Dillon Brooks: DUI Charge Clouds Suns Camp

The news out of Phoenix is considerably darker. Suns forward Dillon Brooks was formally charged with a misdemeanor DUI on September 28, stemming from a March arrest in Scottsdale, Arizona — reportedly just hours after a Phoenix game. The charge was first reported by TMZ and was widely confirmed, arriving as the Suns open preparations for the 2026-27 season.

The Suns organization said it had already addressed the matter internally with Brooks. The timing is awkward: Brooks had his best individual NBA season in 2025-26 during his first year with Phoenix, and he showed up to Suns media day in high spirits, joking about learning kung fu in China during the offseason and warning referees about his new skill set.

A misdemeanor charge doesn't threaten his roster spot, but it does shadow what should have been a clean momentum story for a player who finally looked like the version of himself the Rockets once paid top dollar for.

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Two Ducks, two very different preseason narratives. Pritchard is chasing a payday and a repeat run in Boston; Brooks is managing legal fallout while trying to build on a career-best campaign in the desert. The NBA regular season tips off soon enough — and both storylines will be worth watching when it does.