Despite not having the most active NBA players, the Oregon Ducks men's basketball program has quietly produced highly productive contributors to teams across the league.
With the NBA coming back from the All-Star break this week, let's take a look at how some of the Ducks in the NBA are doing.
1. Payton Pritchard
As the one of the faces of Ducks basketball in the league, Boston Celtics guard Payton Pritchard is easily having his best season yet in the NBA. At the All-Star break, Pritchard is putting up 13.8 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game in an important role coming off the bench. The leading scorer among Oregon players, the fifth-year guard is averaging double-digits points for the first time in his professional career and is also playing a career-high in minutes as well, averaging 27.9 per game.
Pritchard's role as the spark plug off the bench for Boston has helped them find immense success as they look to repeat as NBA champions. Currently, the Celtics are the No. 2 seed in the East, sitting behind the Cleveland Cavaliers and are in the top spot in the Atlantic Division with a 39-16 record. Pritchard could be well on his way to another deep playoff run with Boston if they continue to rack up wins in the second half of the season.
Pritchard, who is famous for his half-court shots at the buzzer, recently addressed why other NBA players don't take those shots because of shooting percentages.
“Soft mentally,” Pritchard said. “Worrying about a shooting percentage. It’s very weak. You care about your individual shooting percentage more than winning. That’s so soft.”
2. Chris Boucher
Toronto Raptors forward Chris Boucher is having a renaissance year after a down season. After averaging 13.6 points per game across 60 games for the Raptors in the 2020-21 season, Boucher averaged 9.4 points per game in back-to-back seasons leading up to last season. In 76 games, Boucher put up 6.4 points a night as he struggled to find the success he did in years prior.
This season, Boucher found his stroke once again and is averaging 10.2 points and 4.4 rebounds per game. Despite finding the individual success, Boucher hasn't helped Toronto piece together wins. The Raptors sit with a 17-38 record and are the third-worst team in the East. It's important that Boucher performs well with it being a contract year for him as he's slated to hit free agency in the upcoming offseason.
3. Dillon Brooks
In his second season with the Houston Rockets, Dillon Brooks is slowly finding his way back to his old form. Brooks is averaging 13.6 points, a career-high 3.8 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game across 52 starts. Unlike Boucher who saw an increase in statistical output, but a decrease in wins, Brooks is seeing a decrease in his personal stats and an increase in wins. Houston is 34-21 and is the No. 4 team in the West and No. 2 in the Southwest Division. Brooks is a valuable experienced starter to a young Rockets squad that is only getting better and better with each passing game.
