Payton Pritchard Survives the Upper-Body Injury Report, Cleared for Wednesday

Payton Pritchard is officially available to play on Wednesday night, meaning the Boston Celtics' most chaotic bench weapon has successfully survived a 24-hour tour of the upper-body injury report.

After missing Tuesday's matchup against the San Antonio Spurs with neck spasms, Pritchard popped up on the injury report again with a right shoulder contusion. Going from a bad neck to a bruised shoulder in the span of a day sounds less like an NBA injury update and more like the morning after sleeping on a cheap hotel mattress.

"Underdog NBA tweeted: 'Payton Pritchard (shoulder) available to play Wednesday.'"

But the Celtics desperately need him on the floor against the Milwaukee Bucks. Pritchard is quietly putting up around 15 points and 3.5 assists per game this season. He is the guy who comes in, hits a 35-footer with zero hesitation, and completely derails the opposing team's defensive game plan before they even realize what happened.

For anyone tracking the betting markets, Pritchard's status is exactly the kind of rotational domino that shifts second-unit props and live totals. When a guy who averages 15 points off the bench gets the green light, the math changes for everyone else on the floor. Just remember to watch the lines adjust, rather than blindly throwing your mortgage at a guy coming off a neck-and-shoulder combo platter.

With Pritchard cleared for Wednesday's tip-off against Milwaukee, Boston gets its spark plug back for a heavy Eastern Conference clash. We will see if the shoulder holds up when he inevitably decides to dive into the third row for a loose ball in the second quarter.